Sherlock and Evie
by the-girl-that's-different
Summary: Sherlock has a girlfriend, Evie. They are unexpectedly thrown into parenthood, how will Sherlock cope with his life been changed by events which he once thought trivial. . Sherlock/OC /parentlock. Rated T just to be safe about language and future language.
1. Chapter 1

"Where's Evie?" asked Sherlock as John entered the room,

"Urm…gone shopping I think, she told you" answered john, picking up the mail and scanning through.

"Wasn't listening, too busy thinking" said Sherlock as he stared at the wall.

"What are you even thinking about, we're meant to be taking a break, a holiday?"

"I was just… never mind, where is Evie again?" called Sherlock as John walked off into the kitchen.

"God Sherlock I know more about her movements than you do and she's not even my girlfriend…"

"No she's mine, Sarah's yours"

"Yes thank you for that, she's just as clever as you Sherlock, maybe more so, not in the same way but she's brilliant" wittered John, he took his usual seat in the arm chair opposite the sofa.

20 minutes later they heard, "hey I'm back, can someone give me a hand with these?" called Evie from the hallway.

"Yep" replied John. Evie was a blond girl of 28, jet green eyes, porcelain skin and reached 5ft 6.

"How was the shop, busy as usual?" asked John as they carried the bags upstairs,

"Yeah very" Evie answered, they put the bags on the counter and headed back for the second lot. Sherlock had disappeared into his room.

The afternoon drifted by and turned into evening; Sarah arrived back from work, bringing Chinese. The evening was spent reliving cases and watching what were in Sherlock view, pointless shows.  
"Okay I think we're going to turn in" said john as the clock reached 11:00pm.

"Yeah we should I have work again tomorrow" agreed Sarah, she cleared the plates away and followed john into their room.

"We should go too" said Evie, "I'm really tired"

"Really? You never get tired?" questioned Sherlock, they were happily lying out on the sofa together and he was in no hurry to move.

"I'm just feeling rather tired that's all." Said Evie.

"Okay", they shut their door behind them and the flat fell silent.

Sarah was woken by the sounds coming from the bathroom; she headed towards the noise and found Evie leaning over the toilet.

"Evie are you okay…?"

"Yeah…I'm okay" answered Evie, she sat up facing her. Sarah bent down to help her up and took Evie back into the kitchen. It was only about 7:15 but everyone was awake except for Sherlock.

"There's coffee on the table for you both, it should be nice and strong" shouted John from the kitchen. Sarah turned on the TV and started flicking for the News channel. A little later, Sherlock emerged from the bedroom, looking tired.

"Hey…how did you sleep?" asked Evie, she was sitting on the sofa and he joined her. As he sat down he placed his arm around her and said, "Okay actually, a bit restless though."

Evie reached for her coffee as Sherlock opened the laptop. "Urmm oh god!" Evie spat her coffee over the floor. "Sorry…umm it's rather hot", Sherlock looked closely at this action, expecting something else to come of it, but when nothing did, he turned back to the laptop. The morning drifted away and changed to afternoon, John spent the afternoon organising the website, Sarah and Evie cleaned the kitchen including the oven and Sherlock yelled abuse at the guests on Jeremy Kyle.

"Okay we need to go now, we're going to the theatre." said Sarah collecting her keys, "we'll be back at 8ish. Bye!"

As the front door shut John turned back to Sherlock, "well I guess we're staying in again."

"Don't you think Evie's acting differently" Sherlock said, more as a statement than question. John looked up, alert.

"Umm, I don't know, not really, why do you say that?"

"She's just seems different, with anyone else I'd know what it was, actually I wouldn't even care, but her…I can never quite get it right" the conversation drifts off and John felt it should stay that way.

They played Cluedo for the evening, and against Johns reasoning and the Cluedo rule book, Sherlock concluded that the murderer was another character who was not listed on the board, which lived under the secret passages and managed to kill Professor Peach with arsenic. At 8:37pm the latch on the door went indicating that Evie and Sarah were back. John was in the armchair, Sherlock was reading and the contents of the Cluedo board was scattered round the room.

"Hiya" said Sarah, pecking john on the cheek.

"How was the theatre?" john asked.

"Oh it was really good" replied Sarah. Sherlock hadn't moved since they got back yet his eyes hadn't left Evie. John and Sarah walked into the kitchen and began to discuss dinner, Evie approached Sherlock. She sat down close to Sherlock and said, "Sherlock? You haven't spoken a word"

"Evie… there's something different, something about you I've completely missed" said Sherlock as he stood up.

"Sherlock, what is this about? There's nothing wrong" Evie lent back, watching him walk around the room.

"No no, what are you not telling me Evie…what's happened?" said Sherlock holding his head.

"Sherlock I am not talking to you about it now" her face began to get flushed as if she was being pressured.

From the kitchen they could hear the conversation getting louder, "we should disappear for a while" said Sarah.

"I don't think that's such a good idea, maybe just go downstairs for a bit, pop in on Mrs Hudson, but I think we might be needed later" said john before they headed out the flat.

"Evie!" he shouted, running his hands through his hair in frustration, "OH! Wait wait! I've been looking at this wrong! I've being trying to find individual things wrong instead of one this it all leads too! You diet, last night you didn't have a glass of wine even though every Saturday we watched some drivel on the TV, well I don't see the point myself but you always has a glass but yesterday you didn't! Wait the coffee! this morning you spat out the coffee saying it was hot, is wasn't hot it couldn't have been, it was sitting there for at least 30 minutes before you even touched it. You tired more, no not just more, a lot more, all the time actually owh and this morning, you went to the bathroom when you came back your breath, it was acidic, like you'd been throwing up! And everything leads…" he stopped and turned to face her. "You're pregnant"

Sherlock looked unbelievingly at Evie; he stood and walked, turned and then said, "Am I correct?" His voice was cracking and husky, like he had just been strangled. Hundreds of things were rushing through his head, how could he have missed this!

"Yes" said Evie.

"How did this happen? We used…you know…" said Sherlock.

"I know."

"How could I have missed this!" said Sherlock.

The conversation died for a while but the stress was getting to Evie and her legs began to wobble. As Sherlock paced the room, Evie waited for him to speak. The atmosphere was unrecognisable, she had never seen Sherlock like this… completely and utterly perplexed.

After a few minutes Sherlock joined Evie on the sofa, they were both calmer, realising that they now actually needed to talk.

Sarah turned to John and said, "What do you thinks going on in there? What's this about anyway?" they were sitting on the bottom of the stairs, waiting.

"I have no idea" said John as he stood up to stretch his legs.

"When did you realise?" asked Sherlock, his voice had become deep and gentle, like it was when they were alone. She understood his actions and reasoning because she was the same, neither of them knew why people acted and thought the way they di,d but Evie had learned to understand, whereas Sherlock was still learning.

"Not very long ago, only yesterday morning. If you saw the signs why didn't you say anything?"

Sherlock sat back, took a deep breath and said, "I didn't see them, well I did but I saw them separately, not together, I didn't add anything up…until now. Does anyone else know?" he asked, turning his head so their eyes now met.

"No I don't think so, Sarah heard me throwing up this morning but she didn't say anything, we'll have to tell her properly though, and John of course, eventually they will find out… unless…"

"No… just no" Sherlock's smile flickered away just as quickly as it came. His reply wasn't angry, just a reassuring yet firm 'no'. "You're sure you're pregnant, right?"

"Yes as sure as I can be" Evie said.

"Yes but have you done tests and things? Made sure"

"I've done 4 tests from over the counter but not bloods yet. I was going to do them yesterday but I thought it was better to tell you first." Explained Evie, she felt calmer now they were talking but her stomach was still churning.

"Okay so bloods, we need to do bloods" said Sherlock.

"We should probably go and get John and Sarah, I expect they're sitting on the stairs, they are going to find out soon if they haven't already. Let's tell them tomorrow, once the bloods are done and we're sure" Said Evie, she didn't know how she felt, or Sherlock and bringing John and Sarah into this now would make an already confusing situation impossible.

"Hmm okay"

It was about 9:45 by the time Evie and Sherlock appeared, Sarah and john had obviously decided to risk coming back into the flat as they were sitting around the TV watching Scott and Bailey. They turned around, waiting for someone to talk. "There's some fish in the kitchen under the grill if you'd like some?" said John.

Unsurely Sherlock said "umm yeah… I guess you had better eat something…because of …you know" he gestured to her stomach and then headed towards the kitchen.

"Thanks John" said Evie as she followed Sherlock into the kitchen. Evie and Sherlock sat on the sofa and started eating.

"Ohh god… I'm going to be sick!" said Evie, rushing to the bathroom.

Sherlock whipped round to follow her, his actions were fast yet clearly unsure whether they were he was making the right decision.

When Sherlock got to the bathroom Evie was sitting on the floor, head bent over the toilet. He sat down on the floor behind her, letting her lean on him. "Its okay" said Sherlock, rubbing Evie's back, he leant up to flush the toilet and said, "I'm sorry Evie, this must be horrible for you."

"Hhm, I know you don't actually empathise with me but thanks" said Evie, smiling.

"No I do Evie I do, I never seem to be able to with everyone else but with you, I actually understand." Evie leant back, resting her head on his shoulder. However this didn't last for long as Evie began to gag, she leant back over the toilet, emptying her stomach in the process.

Evie re-joined them in the lounge after sorting herself out. "Are you feeling okay now Evss?" asked Sherlock. He was being so caring, too caring for Sherlock; it seemed like an act or was he actually pleased about this?

"Yeah better" she said, Sherlock pulled her onto the sofa with him, putting her between him and the back of the sofa. They all sat quietly watching the TV but none of them were really watching, there was an elephant in the room.

"I'm going to bed" said Evie, "I'm exhausted".

"I was thinking of going now as well," added Sarah. At this Sherlock headed to his microscope and took out Evie's blood sample. He caught her eye and she nodded as she walked into their room.


	2. The Tests Begin

Chapter 2:

Sherlock finished testing the bloods at just gone 12:00am; he entered their room, quietly shutting the door. As the door clicked shut Evie stirred, "Sherlock?" she muffled opening her eyes.

"I'm just coming to bed" he added,

"Okay" Evie turned back to face the wall and was dozing again within seconds. Sherlock crossed the room to the wardrobe, pulled out a pair of baggy trackies and an old t-shirt and through them on the chair. He undressed, pulling on the clothes as he turned back to Evie. She had already drifted back to sleep, Sherlock climbed in, wrapped his arms around her and within minutes was asleep himself.

The next morning Evie woke to find Sherlock gone, as she walked into the lounge she heard him in the kitchen, "morning" he said smiling, "how did you sleep?" He asked as he sipped his coffee.

"Good actually, really good" replied Evie walking in to join him.

"Oh I made you some coffee, don't worry, decaf" he said passing it to her, they walked back into the lounge and sat on the sofa.

"Did you do the tests?" Evie asked as she sat cross legged on the sofa facing him, she sat patiently waiting, slipping her drink.

"Mm," Sherlock swallowed his coffee and continued; "yes I did, they were positive, all of them. Your pregnant" His face was blank except for a very faint curve around his mouth.

"What do you think?" Evie asked, even though he had known for at least 12 hours she still had no idea what he thought about this situation. They were still sitting on the sofa, at this Sherlock put his mug down and said,

"What do you mean?" he asked blankly.

"Well you know, this isn't exactly the perfect situation, we're not kids but still… you're always going around and tend to be targeted for murder quite regularly," at this Sherlock laughed,

"Yes I do seem to" he added.

"And my jobs not exactly safe either-"

"Yes I know" cut in Sherlock, "but we'll manage." This statement ended this topic of the conversation and Evie moved on.

"Sherlock, please, what do you actually think about this?" asked Evie.

"Really?" said Sherlock, at this Evie played her mug on the table, giving him her full attention.

"I think It's brilliant, earlier than expected of course and a complete surprise, but brilliant" he grinned and lifted her round towards him so her back was against his chest, wrapping his hands around her waist, covering her stomach. "Really?" Evie asked, resting her head on his chest so she was looking up at him.

"yes." Said Sherlock, leaning down to kiss her.

"We have to tell john and Sarah now" Evie added. "Once they're up though, let's wait for them to wake up a bit, have a drink and then we'll tell them."

John and Sarah appeared about an hour later and by this time Sherlock was dressed, but Evie was still wearing her bed shorts and a vest top. As they came to join them in the sitting room Sherlock stood and said, "John, Sarah, we have something to tell you" Sherlock said, looking at Evie. "Evie's pregnant" he said this plainly and informatively, expecting many questions to follow.

"Bloody hell Sherlock, that's a bit unexpected" John started. Both their faces were in complete shock by Sherlock's statement.

"Um yes" he said, walking into the kitchen. Evie followed him along with Sarah and John, as they waited in the doorway Evie went and sat on the kitchen counter by Sherlock.

"Was this planned? Were you trying?" asked Sarah.

"No, not at all, Evie told me yesterday, I've done some blood tests, It's confirmed" Sherlock said in a formal fashion.

"Okay right" said John standing up, he was talking like he did with his patients and was obviously going to suggests some medical tests. "Evie have you had an ultrasound yet?"

"No, actually I hadn't even thought about that, I don't even know how many weeks I am" Evie said, she was shocked by her lack of knowledge about her own body .

"Well, I have a portable one in my bag if you want to do it now? It's not as clear as the hospital ones but it does the job." Sarah said,

"That would be great thanks Sarah" replied Evie, looking at this situation; it was the most patched up pregnancy she had ever heard of.

"Actually I don't think that's such a good idea," said Sherlock but john cut him off.

"It's just to get an idea of the size of the baby and dates Sherlock, that's all," John said, he started to set out the machine while Sarah found the gel.

The machine beeped and with that Sarah turned to Evie and said, "You should probably lie on the sofa", Evie lay back so she was lying on her back, John and Sarah were operating the ultrasound while Sherlock stood by the kitchen door.

"Look this might be too soon to even be looking" began Sherlock, his face seemed worried, almost nervous, "we have no idea how long it's been-"

"SSHH Sherlock!" said John, Sarah placed the transducer on Evie's stomach and began to search, it took just under a minute to find it and the heartbeat began to thump out into the room. Sherlock walked over to Evie, taking her hand.

"I'd stay…"said Sarah, tapping a few keys, "that you're at least 12 weeks Evie…" Sarah tapped the keys again, making the picture clearer, "actually I'd say more, 14 to 16, I'm no expert but around 14 weeks I'd say." Sherlock, who was leaning on the back of the sofa, looked at Evie and she said, "Oh god… it's actually real."


	3. Chapter 3- 2 Weeks to Go

Evie was the only one awake. She had been up most of the early morning emptying her stomach in the bathroom even though John had promised this would stop after the first months, I guess her body had other ideas. It had been over 4 months since she had found out she was pregnant and everything seemed relatively normal, well as normal as it could be. Sherlock was still very over-protective, even more so since it became obvious, even when she woke in the night from being kicked, Sherlock still panicked, calling John or Sarah to check everything was okay, this led to some very awkward moments in the early hours of the morning.

Evie sat on the sofa quietly watching TV; she was only 2 weeks off her due date and felt like a whale, her bump bulged through her top making it hard to move around. She felt massive, she was massive, much bigger than she had ever expected. Whenever she mentioned he size Sherlock always got rather jumpy, she didn't know why but there was something she was missing. Sherlock was still sleeping when Evie left him but he had obviously notice her absence as he poked his head round the door a while later.

"What are you doing up? You okay?" he mumbled, he had just woken up and hadn't fully adjusted to the awakening as he stood in the doorway wearing only his trackies.

"Yeah, I was just a bit ill again, I didn't want to wake you" Evie replied, she went into the kitchen and began making coffee, she had become a lot more tolerant of smells and tastes over the last few months and was able to handle almost anything that hit her now. Sherlock through on a top and joined her in the kitchen.

As the morning drew on, John and Sarah joined them in the sitting room, "John, Evie's still throwing up, is that normal?" asked Sherlock, normally he would never had asked John such a basic question or any question for that matter but on this subject, both Sarah and John were much more knowledgeable.

"Not normally, but it really depends on her, I guess your baby is rather fussy about the meals" joked John, Sherlock chuckled and then returned to his emails.

"We have a case!" shouted Sherlock, jumping up.

"What's it about?" Evie asked, leaning over to read it "ohh… how odd" but by this time Sherlock had shot to the bedroom to find more than trackies and a t-shirt to wear.

Sherlock appeared from the room fully dressed in minutes, John stood and got his coat and Evie struggled to her feet. "Hey wow Evie, you can't come with us" Said John.

"Why not?" Protested Evie, she felt perfectly capable to go with them. "I'm fine, I've still got 2 weeks to go and I'm so bored sitting around her all day, I haven't been out properly in days."

"Exactly, that kind of change in activity and excitement this close could cause problems, and, well your bumps not exactly little anymore, its a big baby. You must admit your finding it hard to move around" Said john, him and Sherlock stood facing Evie and Sherlock said, "Evie, if you can manage then come with us, but if you can't, then don't strain yourself, please"

"Look I'll be fine" said Evie, walking down the stairs with Sherlock and John following her.

The three of them left the flat, leaving Sarah to the delights of Mrs Hudson's commentary on Jeremy Kyle.

They arrived at the scene at 9:07am. "victim, female, 42, Was travelling down from Manchester when her car was found crashed in the hedge at 6:30 this morning, found by a local, body was found a few metres from the car. Her husband was travelling with her as well, he suffered minimal injuries but has shocked" the officer explained, Lestrade had the day off so Sherlock made to deal with 'the idiocy of the a regular person'. The dead womens husband was sitting in a police car, Sherlock stared at him for a matter of seconds and then moved to the body.

"Why is her body not still in the car?" asked Evie, "she suffered a blow to the head on impact, she wouldn't have been able to get out"

"Murder" answered Sherlock as he walked around the body. He took swabs form the women's coat, bag, rings and fingers.

"Well…obviously, but why would someone murder her and then make it very obvious she had been murdered…unless they wanted us to know she's been murdered." Added Evie.

"Maybe… anyway let's get some samples and get them tested." Said Sherlock, they headed back to the car. As they got back in the car, john asked "where are we going now, to the lab?"

"Nope." Said Sherlock, driving the car back up the lane towards the main road.

"It's obvious John…"started Sherlock. "The husband did it. Did you see his finger nails? Under them were tints of blood, he obviously had to wash the blood off his hands and his clothes but he will have had under an hour to do it so he panics, trying to wash them by hand. The blood comes off his clothes but it still under his fingernails. This was a boring one, easy…too easy"  
"right okay so now Sherlock has had his moment of _brilliance_, can we continue our holiday now?" asked John

"Yes, we should" said Evie. She was tired from that outing, even though it was only an hour and a half since they left the flat her back and pelvis was beginning to hurt.

As they drove along a thin road, they felt the car judder, "God what the bloody hell is that?" exclaimed John; the engine choked twice and fell silent, Sherlock tried to restart the engine of his black, long wheelbase land rover defender which was usually very reliable, but the car shuddered and died. The murder had been on the outskirts of London and the drive back in consisted of many narrow lanes and deserted fields. They were stuck.

They had stopped in the middle of the road, it was quiet, they were surrounded by greenery and nothing could be heard except the wildlife. They sat in silence for at least 20 minutes, Sherlock stared into the distance, John tried to find a network signal and Evie sat in the back watching them. John found a faint signal and rung Sarah, "she's at least an hour away and with the traffic, probably more but she's coming" explained John as he ended the call.

"So we just wait until we get picked up" said Sherlock, you could tell by his tone of voice that he was frustrated. They sat again in silence for what seemed like a lifetime until...

"Oww" groaned Evie; she sat back, rubbing her stomach. Sherlock and john whipped round, desperately hoping what they thought was not happening.

"No, come on, no" said John, he couldn't believe that this was happening now, of all the moments this could have happened, It had to be now.

"Sss…oww, I'm sure it's nothing…" began Evie but as the pain got worse she began to shake her head. Sherlock hadn't moved since Evie's first sounds, his face was white, whiter than usual.

"Oh Shit... John, what's happening?" he asked, there was fear, real fear in his voice.

"I don't know Sherlock" said John, leaning over to look at Evie. Evie screamed and moaned as the pains got worse.

"Right Sherlock, we need to get her out the car! Now!" ordered John. As Sherlock lifted Evie out of the car he said, "how to hell can this be happening now?! She's not even due for another 2 weeks?!"

"Well Sherlock, if you haven't noticed the baby isn't small, actually it's very big, too big and all this strenuous moving around on the case has obviously started it off a bit earlier than expected!"

Evie's pain was worse but not closer together, although her whimpers and cries turned Sherlock whiter. John headed to the car to ring an ambulance leaving Evie leaning against Sherlock.

"oh shit…haah-" began John as he returned, "there's no bloody signal again!" At this Evie cried out again, the pain was getting worse, almost unbearable, turning Sherlock ghostly.


	4. Chapter 4- The False Alarm

It had been about 40 minutes since John contacted Sarah and Evie's pains started about 20 minutes after. She sat in the fresh air breathing deeply while leaning on Sherlock; john was trying to get a signal again and failing. "Evie what's happening now?" asked John, his professional character was taking over and, looking at the state of Sherlock, this was a wise move.

"they come and go, but there not closer together, just the same each time but extremely painful" she was much calmer at this minute as she hadn't had pain for at least 3 minutes. This statement seemed to jinx it as she began to moan in pain again, screwing up her face. John gestured towards Sherlock to help her in some way, the midwife had suggested to him to read books on pregnancy, birth and childcare, but whether Sherlock had done so was a mystery to him. John walked off, waving his phone in the air, frantically trying to find a signal. Sherlock hadn't spoken for a few minutes, but once he had regained the little colouring he usually had, he began to speak.

"are you okay? Sorry. Stupid question. Of course you're not. Can I help in any way though?" he was calmer than before and could see that Evie was in real trouble.

"I don't really know…" tried Evie, she was gently rocking back and forwards, her faced was still screwed up and she was rubbing her lower back. Stringing a sentence together was obviously very difficult and Sherlock wasn't helping. He noticed her actions and began to rub her back for her, trying to relieve some of the pain.

"thanks" whispered Evie, she seemed exhausted and Sherlock allowed her to lean her full weight on his shoulder. She was light, he could easily lift her out the car even with the extra weight from the baby, it was the least he could do to take a bit of the strain of her body at this stage.

This process carried on for the next half an hour. Every 5 minutes or so Evie would get these pains, Sherlock would try and help, John would curse about the phone signal and Sherlock occasionally swore whenever Evie did.

"John, I think their getting a bit better actually, the pains, I don't think there as bad" said Evie, not raising her eyes from the ground, Sherlock was stilling rubbing her back but no longer had Evie leaning on him, she had taken to leaning forwards as far as her protruding stomach would allow.

"okay… so you're not in labour?" Asked John, he seemed confused.

"I don't know do I" snapped Evie, "I've never been in this situation either!" she was exhausted and these unanswerable questions from John really weren't helping her.

"I'm sorry Evie, I didn't mean to" said John.

"hey, how come she gets forgiven for snapping at you, yet when I do, you're pissed for ages?" Asked Sherlock.

"because she has good reason Sherlock! She's pregnant and currently experiencing what is known around the world as one of the most painful experiences the human body can produce!" Said John. This was another moment where Sherlock baffled him. John walked off, leaving Evie and Sherlock alone.

"Eves, this must be painful?" said Sherlock almost like he was suggesting the idea. Evie mustered a faint smile and said, "you know, it is. I'm so tired, everything aches and I can barely support the weight of my own head" when she said this, Sherlock guided her back, so she was sitting, half on him and half on the bench, her weight, body and head were now leaning back on him.

"thank you Sherlock" she said, smiling. He smiled back and was beginning to act normally again, well normally for Sherlock.

Sarah pulled up a few minutes later, "John I've just received about 40 missed calls from you and many panicked texts in one go, I guess the signal-" before she could finish her sentence, she saw Evie and Sherlock and realised what was happening.

"Shit, what's going on?!" she asked, rushing towards Evie. Evie sat up and Sherlock began to explain. "are you still getting pains now?" asked Sarah,

"no they seem to have stopped, which is weird" said Evie, she was regaining her natural colouring again and generally seemed pretty chilled about the whole experience now.

"how long since they stopped?"

"almost 10 minutes"

"how far apart were they before?" Sarah asked again.

"4-5 minutes"

"oh, they were probably just Braxton Hicks then." Said Sarah In a cool voice, she and Evie both seemed very calm about the situation down, whereas Sherlock and John were both in panic mode.

"how do you know?" Asked Sherlock, helping Evie up onto her feet.

"believe me, if she was in labour, then she would be in a lot more pain about now and may even have delivered!" finished Sarah. Evie walked towards Sarah's car and with the watchful eye of Sherlock, slide into the right back seat. Once they were all in the car John said,

"right on that note I suggest we go home, Evie gets checked out and we find a garage for that lump of crap." gesturing to Sherlock's car.


	5. Chapter 5- The Pub

**Sorry this is quite short but the next part is coming very soon! Please leave reviews and comments, i love to here them! any ideas for the story would be brilliant as well :)**

"after that false alarm I think we need a drink" john said. They were all back at the flat now, both men had recovered but were still slightly edgy. "Evie will you be okay to come with us? you not getting any more pains right?" they were all sitting in the lounge, John and Sarah took there usually seats opposite the sofa however there was no longer enough room of both Sherlock and Evie on the sofa as Evie's stomach meant she could no longer sit comfortably so Sherlock was made to sit on a chair from the kitchen once john had explained why you cannot expect a heavily pregnant women to 'just more over more'

"no I'm fine now, the pains have stopped" said Evie smiling, the events of that day seemed rather comical now.

"like I said, from what it sounds like they were just Braxton hicks' contractions, they are very normal, it's sort of your body's way of practising for the real thing"

"they were painful though" added Evie,

"we could see that." Said John, "that didn't exactly seem a piece of cake." They laughed at this, the atmosphere was much lighter now.

"yes it did seem quite uncomfortable" Sherlock added, making the understatement of the year. Evie laughed at this, drawing a chuckle from John and Sarah.

It was about 7:30pm when then headed to The Stag for a drink. Obviously Evie couldn't drink and Sarah joined her in that, ordering two apple juices whereas Sherlock and John both ordered a pint. Greg Lestrade and Anderson were already there.

"hey, didn't think I'd be seeing you here?" Said Lestrade as they sat down.

"yeah isn't she ready to pop yet? Rather big isn't she?" added Anderson sneering at Sherlock, he gestured towards Evie who was now sitting at a table with Sarah.

"shut up Anderson. It's _none_ of your business." He snapped, Sherlock shot him a foul look just before Evie and Sarah reached them.

"hey Greg" said Evie as she and Sarah joined them at the bar, she frowned at Anderson, she didn't like him but was much better at hiding it than Sherlock.

"how are you Evie?" Asked lestrade, Anderson was now having a rather ugly conversation with John and Sarah, leaving Sherlock floating between the two.

"I'm good thanks, pretty exhausted; I had a false alarm today which freaked everyone out, Braxton hicks I think they call them"

"oh yeah, Lucy had them when she had our first" added Lestrade. Sherlock interjected at this point.

"you have children?" he asked, there was surprise in his voice.

"yeah actually I do Sherlock, thanks for remembering." Said Lestarde sarcastically, he would have been offended, but it was Sherlock, it was an achievement if he thought your name was even worth remembering.

"shit, that was close then," Lestrade Said, "you could have ended up having to deliver by the road, with John to help".

Sherlock laughed at this and said, "what a worrying thought" Sherlock finished his pint and then ordered another even though John and Lestrade had barely started theirs.


	6. Chapter 6- Drunken Revelations

**This is the rest of 'A Normal Life', hope everyone likes it, And thank you very much to my previous reviewers :)**

Throughout the evening, the conversation changed, covering almost every subject. Evie and Sarah spent most of the evening at the table; Evie didn't fancy having to stand anymore than needed.

"wow Sherlock slow down" said John, he had been watching what Sherlock was drinking throughout the evening, and it was far more than them. John and Lestrade ordered there second drink each while Sherlock suggested shots after already finishing him 3rd.

"Sherlock? Shots? Come on? No. you're already pretty out of it already." Sherlock went ahead and ordered 4 shots anyway; he handed 2 to John and Lestrade, downed his first and then gestured to them to join him in his second. John and lestrade looked worryingly at each other, shrugged and then chugged theirs back too.

"I needa Smokes" said Sherlock, his words were muddled but not slurred; he walked towards the door, slightly unsteadily, but still together.

Anderson had gone home and John and Greg were sitting at the bar alone. Throughout the evening they had migrated around the room, occasionally joining Evie and Sarah's conversation but always returned to their bar area. They sat there watching, Evie and Sarah were talking quietly in the corner and Sherlock could be seen outside. John could see that Evie was getting tired and uncomfortable; he knew that he would have to deal with Sherlock this evening, although he was looking surprisingly steady considering his alcohol intake.

Lestrade turned to John and said, "seriously how bad was he? when it started"

"truthfully?" asked John. Over the past few years, John and Lestrade had become good friends, sharing a mutual understanding and frustration of Sherlock.

"worse than I've ever seen him, he was white as a sheet, had no sense of logic or thinking, honestly I think he was terrified, I mean she was screaming, you know, and it scared him, really scared him" said John.

"I mean, I've never really understood him and Evie, but she seems to almost make him, normal." added lestrade.

"I know, I've never seen him act the same way he does when he's with her."

"bloody hell, how the fuck with he deal with it when it really happens?" continued Lestrade.

"I don't know but not well, I don't even want to think what he might do if something goes wrong" said John, he looked around, checking he could still see the locks of black hair standing outside the pub.

"Is there reason to think it will go wrong?" asked Lestrade, he was now worried, he liked Evie immensely, as well as her being a genuinely lovely person, she somehow manage to make Sherlock 'pleasant' to be around.

"Well I'm worried about it, people kept saying that's she's big, I didn't really notice until recently, until it got closer to the due date, but the baby is very big, dangerously so actually. She's still got 2 weeks to go and it's actually sized as if its 1 and ½ weeks late." Said John, he was worried, really worried.

"surely they've just got the dates wrong?" suggested Lestrade.

"I thought that but, Sherlock and Evie worked it out and them of all people wouldn't make an error like that plus, in the earlier weeks the baby was the right size for the date, its only in the last 2 months that its grown at a faster rate."

"genetic maybe?" suggested Lestrade again.

"I don't think so, Mycroft said Sherlock was a normal size when born, I mean, Evies only 5ft 6 ish, Sherlock's 6ft but even so, that shouldn't make it this big, so I have no idea"

"Is _that_ why Sherlock's been so _strange _tonight?" asked Lestrade.

"I suppose, he will have noticed himself and has also started to worry, although we'll have to watch him, it's only 10:10pm and he's already had 3 pints and 2 shots, he's very close to hammered." Sherlock swaggered back into the pub, he was walking strangely and John could see he had hit his alcohol limit.

"whass going on?" asked Sherlock, he was beginning to slur his words. The cigarette had obviously kicked in the alcohol as Sherlock was beginning to sway.

"EVIE! Come here pleases" whined Sherlock, Evie looked up, realised what state Sherlock was in and carefully walked over.

"John is Sherlock drunk again?" at this point Sherlock was leaning on Lestrade, muttering the conclusion of the last case. Evie frowned, "I couldn't stop him, you know how he is" apologised John. Evie nodded, while Sherlock began stumble.

"right, shall we go home?" suggested Sarah, Sherlock was hammered, Evie was tired and she didn't fancy trying to coax Sherlock home without Evie's help. They were standing in a circle in front of the bar, Sherlock was now leaning on John, Lestrade had quick exit, Sarah was on Johns other side and Evie was leaning on the bar next to the hammered Sherlock. Sherlock sudden stood up, ridged. He pointed to Evie's stomach. "Oh god not this again…" said John, he remembered the last time the drunken Sherlock questioned her stomach, he did not want to relive that.

"Eves, youu'e huge…"Slurred Sherlock he began to poke her stomach.

"oww Sherlock, that's not very comfortable" said Evie, she didn't blame him, she agreed, she was huge. John guided the delusional Sherlock away from Evie; he didn't fully trust him in this state. Last time, when john hadn't intervened, Sherlock had pinned Evie against the bar, placed a glass against her stomach and then began to try and communicate with the baby through Morse code.

"right John, Evie and I are going home, stay with Sherlock, and get him something to eat, that might get him slightly sober and then bring him home."

"please look after him John." Said Evie as they walked out. Sherlock was leaning awkwardly against to bar, staring into a glass.

"nooo! staying! Because, having a baby!" yelled Sherlock after Evie but she was gone, everything he had drunk that evening had hit him, he was totally out of it now. Jumping up on a table, he began dancing to the live music playing in the other bar, his balance must have returned to him but his sense of judgement was as drunk as he was.

"Sherlock, get down, Sarah and Evie have gone" Sherlock obeyed this order, jumping off the table.

He Stumbled on landing but stayed on his feet. Brian was behind the bar and knew John from similar experiences to this; he placed a sandwich on the bar for Sherlock.

"Sherlock-eat this." said John, he was getting pissed off and tired now and had little patience for Sherlock. Sherlock grabbed the sandwich from John and began to spit pieces of bread as he spoke, "John, imma gunna have baby" said Sherlock in between devouring mouthfuls.

"Yes Sherlock, you are, you're going to have to stop this" but Sherlock was oblivious to him. "God Sherlock you never learn your limit, you always drink just a little too much and it sends you over the edge" Sherlock had finished the sandwich, leaving no remains.

"right off we go" said John, steering Sherlock towards the door, Sherlock tripped forwards, saved only by John's quick reaction. John gripped around Sherlock waist and guided him onto the street. John propped Sherlock against a lamp post and tried to hail a cab. He could feel his phone vibrating in his jacket but ignored it, it was probably just Lestrade. At cab pulled up and John went to get Sherlock who was now trying to convince the lamppost to let him borrow its mobile.

"Sherlock that's a bloody lamppost" said John, sighing. He managed to get Sherlock into the cab, who was still yelling at the lamppost. Sherlock and John sat quietly in the cab, Sherlock was starting to calm down now, and food always seemed to have this effect on his drunken self. John's phone was still vibrating; he chose not to answer it as Sherlock would probably through it out the window again.

When they arrived at 221B, John opened the front door, they walked up to their door, Sherlock was still very wobbly but didn't need Johns help anymore. He acted so different when drunk to anyone else John new. Normal people would get worse throughout the evening and eventually pass out, but Sherlock would get hammered, get to the point of passing out and then recover enough to pass as sober.

They entered the stair well and Sherlock slammed the door, they could hear a lot of movement coming from the flat and began to walk across the hall. Sherlock began to climb the long and narrow staircase to their flat; he was shaky but could just manage by hanging onto the wall with john following.

An ear piercing sound came from upstairs, "SHERLOCK!" screamed Evie. Sherlock and John looked at each other in a split second before launching themselves up the stairs.

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	7. Chapter 7- The Birth

Sherlock and John flung themselves into the flat as fast as their legs would carry them. It was very clear what was happening. Evie was in labour. "Oh god no please no!" shouted Sherlock as they bolted towards the cries.

"Sherlock!" screamed Evie, she was leaning on the sofa and was clearly in a lot of pain. Sherlock darted over to her but had no idea what to do when he got there. Evie's contractions were much stronger than that morning. Sarah was standing over Evie but turned to John, "why the hell didn't you answer your phone?!" started Sarah,

"I was dealing with Sherlock, he's not exactly easy to deal with when he's drunk!" said John, he was so stressed and shocked that he couldn't quite believe it. Luckily Sarah, also being a doctor, knew what she was doing.

Evie's contraction hadn't stopped since the start, it was continuous.

"Have you rung the hospital?" asked John; he was standing with Sarah about 5ft away from Evie who was still in agony. Sherlock was standing silently next to her, he was in shock.

"Yes, but there's no answer, I rung Lestrade and he said that there's been a massive crash in the centre, by picadilly, the roads are jammed up and St Bart's is on standby for the traumas." Explained Sarah in a worried tone and Sherlock picked that up.

"Is she actually in labour?!" Sherlock asked Sarah, he started rubbing Evie's back but in a way that seemed more for his comfort than hers.

"She is, but her contractions aren't stopping, she's not getting a break. This isn't normal though Sherlock" answered Sarah, there was concern in her voice and Sherlock picked up on this. At this Evie's head whipped round. She had been pretty out of it but this statement didn't fill her with any confidence.

"WHAT?! What the hell, no, no I can't do it now! Not here! Argghh!" the pain got worse, taking over Evie and she leant forwards to throw up. She grabbed at something to hold, trying the channel the pain. Sherlock moved her over while Sarah cleared up. He bent down, trying to show Evie his support, but she was past that now.

John and Sherlock looked at each other, both feeling completely and uttered out of their depth. John tried to make himself busy and said, "I'll find some sheets and stuff, if she's having the baby here then we don't want to have to redecorate as well" he walked off into the bedrooms trying to find something suitable.

"Sherlock…help me" whined Evie; she was squeezing his hand and arm with such force he was sure it would need medical attention as well.

"Evie, come on…" started Sherlock, he wanted to say something clever or just something, but Sarah quickly shook her head and Sherlock was silenced.

Evie began to talk; she talked In short phrases between each pant, "Sherlock…you know…last summer when…I got shot in the leg…"

"Yes, I remember that very well" recalled Sherlock; he threw of his coat and jacket, rolled up his sleeves, preparing for the hardest moment of his life. "You hit me when I tried to move you"

"Well…at the moment…taking into consideration…the pain I'm in…I'd very happily take that…that bullet again." She finished, her contraction weakened and she half collapsed on Sherlock.

"Sarah!" called Sherlock, she had walked off to help John but Sherlock couldn't think straight, he had been shot himself in the past years and he will never forget the burning pain a bullet wound gave. He couldn't even image what Evie was going through.

Sarah came running and saw Sherlock kneeling on the floor with Evie leaning forwards on his shoulders.

"Sherlock… I don't know what's happening" she said, she couldn't tell why her contractions weren't stopping; she suspected it was related to the baby's size.

"Evie I know this is embarrassing and to be honest, bloody awkward but, I need to have a look …" said Sarah, she needed to check how long they might have before it got complicated.

Sarah sent Sherlock to help John as he had turned a ghostly colour at the idea, she questioned why, after all he was the baby's father but when she saw Evie in this state is cut her to the core. She couldn't even begin to comprehend what it was doing to Sherlock. Evie brought out a brutal truth about Sherlock. He cared.

Not wanting to have to revive Sherlock through the examination; she thought it best he left the room.

"Okay Evie, I'd say only about 5-7 minutes before your gunna want to push" said Sarah, finishing.

"Oh Shit." Said Evie, "I don't want to do this, I'm exhausted" she whispered, closing her eyes.

"John? It's soon" stated Sherlock; he had become awkward and reserved. They were both standing in the hall by the airing cupboard but finding the sheets wasn't the priority.

"Yes Sherlock, it bloody well is, you're going to be a father and you'll just have to deal with it now"

"I know that John." Snapped Sherlock, being a father wasn't his pain worry, that all came afterwards and he would deal with that when it happened. the current events were what haunted him "But the size, what about the size, how, how will she?" he trailed off, his eyes were stricken with grief and in that moment John saw just how much he cared for her.

John's voice softened, "Sherlock, I don't know, but I'll be honest-it's risky, I can't promise she'll be alright" Sherlock's face was indescribable, he loved Evie so much, probably too much for his own good, know body new this, not even Evie. He couldn't lose her.

At this moment Sarah walked in to find them, "Sherlock, Evie's exhausted, you NEED to help her now, or else I don't know how she'll do this. I'm worried about this, she hasn't had a break in the contractions since they started, and I think her body's going into shock."

"What, you think the size of the baby is too much for her?" asked John, "I heard about a case like this when I was training. The baby was so large that when the labour started, the mothers body almost panicked, like it had just realised, 'how on earth it was going to get the thing out?'" by this time Sherlock's face could not have turned a worse colour nor have portrayed such a fear stricken expression.

"So what the hell will happen to her if her body reacts before the babies born?" asked Sherlock, his eyes were watering, realising just how serious this situation had now got. They were all still standing in the hallway and all could be heard was Evie's heavy breathing in the background.

John's expression said it all. The women he heard about had died in the labour and his face couldn't hide this. Sherlock's face scrunched up and then he turned and thumped the wall twice, tears building in his eyes.

"Sherlock, I'm sure she'll be fine" tried John, he knew he was very little comfort to his friend at this point but he had to show he cared.

"Shut up John!" said Sherlock, he had tried to scream this but his voice had broken and it was more of a whispery hiss. Sherlock had never felt pain like this. He never knew how much he cared for Evie before this. How much it could _hurt._

Another scream could be heard from the living room, Sherlock ran in, closely followed by Sarah then John.

"please no…" whispered Sherlock.

Evie was sitting on the sofa, her face pasty white and covered in sweat. She grabbed at Sherlock's hand, more for a distraction than comfort. Sarah was setting out the sheets and things for the baby's delivery while Sherlock helped Evie onto them. The pain became too much for Evie's body to cope with, she vomited twice and then fell back exhausted. Both John and Sarah could see that this baby needed to come soon else Evie's body would give in. This was not a simple labour.

Sherlock helped to move Evie so she was sitting on the floor, leaning back against the sofa. Sherlock had suggested she lean on him but John wasn't 100% sure Sherlock wouldn't end up passed out, especially if something went wrong, he still had a lot of alcohol in his system and was currently running on adrenaline, which would eventually run out.

As Evie's worst contraction hit, Sarah felt it was time. John was sterilising the kitchen equipment in case needed, he didn't want to be there for the birth, Sherlock needed this time with Evie and with another life about to enter the room, 5 was more than a crowd.

"Okay Evie, I can see the head" encouraged Sarah, "push Evie!"

Evie pushed with everything she had, she was leaning back on Sherlock who had got himself between Evie and the sofa by now.

"Please Evess, please" whispered Sherlock, he had never been so close to losing her and the feeling of reality had hit him. Evie was still pushing and gradually the baby's head appeared.

"Okay well done, how about the shoulders? I know it's an ask but it's got to be done" joked Sarah, she was very surprised Evie had managed this without any assistance and wanted to keep it that way. The baby was arriving better than she had expected and she needed to keep Evie's spirits up.

"OWWW SHERLOCK I HATE YOU…" screamed Evie, he chuckled in desperation at this.

'If_ she has enough energy to talk then she has enough to do this,' _he thought.

"Yep well shoot me afterwards" replies Sherlock, he was trying to joke and lighten the mood of this desperate time. "come on Evie"

With one final push the baby was delivered, Evie fell back onto Sherlock in exhaustion. The baby was very big; it looked as though it was 3 weeks old.

The baby began to cry, laughing in relief, Sarah placed the baby on Evie's chest, although Evie had such little body strength left that Sherlock had to keep her upright.

"What is it?" Asked John, he returned from the kitchen when he heard the baby's cries, bringing a towel.

"It's a girl" said Sarah, at this Sherlock looked down at the baby lying quietly, he had a daughter.


	8. Chapter 8- Everything Changes

221B Baker Street was quiet for about 10 minutes. It was peaceful and calm, John had managed to get through to St Bart's when the baby was being born and an ambulance would be with them in about 20 minutes to take Evie and the baby in.

Sarah covered Evie in a sheet and then joined John in the kitchen, leaving Evie and Sherlock with their baby.

"Evie, I can't believe you just did that" said Sherlock, he was smiling down at her while stroking the baby's head.

"neither can I" replied Evie, she was physically and mentally drained but couldn't stop staring at the bundle in her arms.

"What shall we call her?" Asked Sherlock, "Maybe after your mother?" he suggested, he knew babies were often named after family members and he would prefer it to be Evie's family than his.

"Sherlock? We are not calling our baby Pertunia" stated Evie,

"okay fair enough, we never really disgust names" he said, Evie was still leaning on him and he let her rest her head on his shoulder.

"I think we should name her after Sarah, after all, without her I don't know what would have happened" suggested Evie, she was so greatful to Sarah and didn't dare think what might have happened to her if she wasn't there.

"hmm, maybe not Sarah, that could get confusing, what's her middle name?" asked Sherlock.

Evie looked down at the baby in her arms, "Ruby" the baby gurgled at this, she looked like a Ruby.

"Ruby it is then" said Sherlock, he leant in and kissed Evie. "You know John will never forgive me for this, before I met you I agreed I would name my first born Hamish, after him. Although I never even considered a child then" they both laughed at this remark and then turned back to Ruby.

Evie passed her over to Sherlock, this was his first time holding her, or any baby for that matter, yet he naturally made a cradle for her with his arms and held her close to him. Evie closed her eyes and Sherlock wondered into the kitchen, leaving her to rest.

She had his eyes. Before he met Evie, he never thought he would have a child, he didn't want one. But in this every moment, staring down into his daughter eyes, _his eyes_, he couldn't imagine life without her.

She crunched up her face as though she was about to cry but Sherlock shifted her so she was lying over his shoulder, Ruby coughed slightly and then fell silent again. He looked closely at the child sleeping on his shoulder, she was an exact mix of both of them, she had his eyes and hair but Evie's facial features.

John joined Sherlock in the kitchen, Sarah was attending to Evie, getting her ready to go to hospital. John was standing in the doorway, watching Sherlock. Sherlock looked up and noticed him, gesturing to John to meet the baby. John walked quietly and slowly over to Sherlock and peered at her face.

"Wow Sherlock, she looks just like you…poor child" joked John. "no she's beautiful"

"Thanks John" said Sherlock, Ruby began to stur again and Sherlock moved her back into his arms, cradling her.

"that was close, too close, horrible actually" said John. They were both now leaning on the table, looking at Ruby.

"you have no idea" said Sherlock, "John I thought I was going to lose her" he was still looking down at the baby lying in his arms. She was uttering and completely at his mercy, he could do whatever he wanted with her and yet the feeling to protect her was overrunning all emotions.

"the paramedics will be here any minutes to take Evie and baby to hospital" said John,

"Okay" said Sherlock, "hold her John?"

"Umm yeah okay" said John, he was surprised but honoured at the same time, after all, Sherlock was trusting him with his own flesh and blood.

Sherlock carefully handed the baby into Johns arms, "her names Ruby, Evie wanted to name her after Sarah." Sherlock brushed Ruby's cheek before standing back.

"Sherlock that's perfect, she's perfect" said John, Sherlock nodded, watching. He had never felt these emotions for someone before. Ruby squeeked and then began to cry softly.

"oh Sherlock I think you better have her back" said John, moving towards Sherlock.

"what, how am I meant to stop her crying?" asked Sherlock but John was already handing her back. Ruby's cries got louder and Sherlock took her back. Sherlock looked confused but tried anyway. He gently bounced the baby in his arms, quietly shushing her. This seemed to work as Ruby gave a final cry and then quietened. She curled herself into a ball, bringing her legs close to her chest and reaching out for something. Sherlock placed his fore finger in her reach and she clung to it.

"Sherlock, I think you're going to be fine actually" said John, smiling at them. He knew this baby would be the making of Sherlock. "She'll be getting hungry soon and that's something you can't help her with" They headed back into the lounge just as the paramedics arrived, along with Lestrade.

Sarah had got Evie into some clothes and she was up and talking to one of the paramedics.

"what are you doing here?" Sherlock asked Lestrade, still gently rocking Ruby.

"I was driving past and saw the ambulance in the road and guessed it had started" Answered Lestrade as he moved over to look at the baby. "God, you know who the father is don't you" stated Lestarde. John nodded at this but Sherlock looked offended by this remark and Lestrade quickly said, "You Sherlock, she looks just like you"

By the time everyone had had a hold of the newcomer and she was passed back to Evie, the ambulance was ready to go. The paramedic turned to the group of men standing in the living room and asked, "Father?" at this they all looked confusingly around. Of course it was Sherlock but it was one of those moments when knowone's brain was quite functioning properly, even Sherlocks.

Sherlock stepped forwards, the paramedic nodded and then Sherlock climbed into the ambulance.

"Sherlock we'll follow behind" said John. The doors were closed and the ambulance pulled away towards St. Barts.


	9. Chapter 9- The Hospital

Evie was taken into a room for general checks on arrival. John, Sarah and Grey Lestrade met Sherlock in the waiting room and were then joined by a nurse, "Mr. Holmes, we need to take the Baby up to paediatrics for the routine checks, she's going up now if you follow me, currently she's only listed as Baby R as the birth certificate hasn't been sorted yet, so if you just sign in as the father, you will be let in" Sherlock walked off after the nurse, his coat was turned up at the collar, he always found hospitals uncomfortable as a constant reminder of human weakness and death. It was the middle of the night yet time didn't seem to matter in these moments.

"Well, that was a surprise, although actually, I didn't really expect anything less from them" said Lestrade. John laughed and then said, "Yes indeed, I expect Sherlock entered this world in a similar fashion" a voice from behind them corrected Johns statement, "Actually he did John, except it did not have the same outcome" they turned and saw Mycroft standing in the doorway. He walked in casually and sat with them.

"Sherlock's with the baby" Said John.

"Yes I know, that's why I choice this moment to make my presence know" he didn't expect his brother to be very pleased to see him.

"They had a girl" said Sarah, she didn't know how much Mycroft new and after all he was family.

"Excellence. Who does she look like?" Mycroft was genuinely interested.

"scarily like Sherlock" said Lestrade, they were all sitting quietly in the waiting room, it was empty apart from them and the view from the window was dark.

"How is he acting?" Asked Mycroft, this was aimed at John who had been expecting Sherlock's behaviour to rear its head soon.

"He's very good with her, protective of her, but I guess that is to be expected" said John.

"How's Evie, is she well?"

"As far as I know yes, why? I think this would be a good time to explain why you're here Mycroft?"

Mycroft began, "we were always told that out mother died when we were young, I can remember a few things about her but Sherlock never could. When we got older, we discovered just how young. Our mother in childbirth. Sherlock's birth. He found out aged 16, it changed him. He blamed himself and I don't think he's ever stopped. That why our relationship is so sour." John looked unbelievingly at this; he couldn't believe Sherlock never told him.

"That's why he was so bloody terrified when she was in pain", resolved John. "And so protective now"

"Don't look so surprised John, I don't expect he even told Evie" said Mycroft. At this moment John's phone went off, it was Sherlock:

_'Come to paediatrics, don't worry everything fine. SH'_

"But that was 30 odd years ago, childbirth is even safer now than then" queried John.

"John, that's not all of it, I'll explain later" finished Mycroft. They all left the waiting room and began the tricky task of navigating they're way around the hospital.

Sherlock was standing in a practise room with a doctor; Ruby was in a plastic cot container and was now wearing a cream baby grow.

"Mr. Holmes you have a fine and healthy baby, I'm very happy for her to see visitors now, help her socialise. I understand that her mother is being checked over as well and now resting" said the doctor, flicking through the paperwork.

"Yes and thank you" replied Sherlock.

"All you need to do is sign the discharge papers and she's yours" said the doctor. John and Sarah were waiting in the corridor when Sherlock left the room. They had obviously thought ahead as they handed Sherlock a baby carrier. Sherlock signed the discharge papers and left the paediatric ward.

They were on their way to see Evie when Mycroft appeared at the end of the main corridor. Sherlock glared at him.

"Mycroft, what are you doing here?" asked Sherlock as they met, his voice was cold and harsh.

"I came to see the baby amongst other things-"

Sherlock cut in, "what other things- this doesn't concern you"

"But it does Sherlock" said Mycroft, he glanced at John who had already been informed of this additional information. Sherlock noticed this and asked, "Do you know? John, Sarah- you know yes?"

They nodded and Sherlock turned back to Mycroft, "that wasn't for you to share!" said Sherlock in a raised voice.

"It was mine as much as yours Sherlock, after all we are equal in that relationship" said Mycroft calmly but you could hear the anger at the back of his voice. Sherlock was frustrated and john was fully aware of this now.  
"Yes alright boys, please not here or now, since one of you is holding a baby and the other a rather large umbrella I suggest this is not the time" Said John.

"I'm going to see Evie now" Stated Sherlock, "John; I suggest Ruby stays with you for the moment, ill text you when I need you" Said Sherlock as he handed the baby carrier over to Sarah.

"Don't touch that child Mycroft! I don't want her exposed to your patterns of thinking at this early stage, it could ruin her!" said Sherlock walking off. John didn't mind being left with the baby, he could see Sherlock was getting frustrated and having the baby mixed in with that as well just was not a good idea, he needed some time to cool off.

**I'd just like to say that, I'm pretty sure a condition like this exists but I'm not 100% sure so i may be wrong. **

**Please leave reviews as they are what keeps me writing and keeps my spirits up so please, any views are great to here :)**


	10. Chapter 10- Names

Sherlock found Evie's room in a matter of minutes; Mycroft had already got his claws in as she was in a private room at the end of the ward. Evie was asleep when Sherlock entered the room but she stirred at the sound of the door, "hey how are you feeling?" asked Sherlock as he walked over to her bed. She was still wearing the jeans and a knitted jumper Sarah had found her before they left.

"Mm okay" said Evie, she was still pretty tired but was desperate to see him. He leant down, kissed her and then sat on the chair next to the bed.

"Where's ruby?" asked Evie, she sat up, looking for her.

"I left her with Sarah and John, I wanted to talk to you" Evie relaxed at this point, she trusted Sarah and John.

"Evie I'm so sorry, I put your life in so much danger" Evie sort of laughed in disbelief at this.

"What? Sherlock it's not your fault, it's no one's fault, unplanned pregnancies happen, it's not your fault"

"No I don't mean that, the birth was so dangerous." Said Sherlock.

"Sherlock, I'm sort of meant to do that, I'm built for it, every women is" she didn't quite understand what Sherlock was getting at.

"no Evie, yours was especially so" He leaned forwards and took a deep breath, he placed his hands on his head, his eyes not meeting hers, "there's this genetic condition, which causes the babies placenta to mutate, it doesn't harm the child or the child growth, if anything it aids the growth but it causes mass bleeding on delivery."

Sherlock paused and Evie said, "But how does this affect us, Sherlock? How is this related?" asked Evie in a slow voice, this was going somewhere and she didn't like it.

"It's in my genetics. My mother died of it delivering me. I'm a carrier." Evie looked stunned, she knew Sherlock's mother died when he was younger but he never said anything else, she swung her legs over the edge of the bed so she was facing him, "Sherlock why didn't you tell me this?"

"I assumed it only occurred down the female line and that our baby wouldn't be affected by it. But when I saw how big the baby was I began to wonder whether it was linked and that I had passed it on. Your pains were horrific to watch, I thought they seemed worse than they should be so I thought you were bleeding out"

"Sherlock you should have told me" said Evie, she wasn't angry or disappointed that he hadn't said anything; she understood that, she was actually more concerned that he had been worrying about this for months.

"I know, I couldn't tell whether it affected you or not, I didn't want to raise it in the earlier weeks as only 17% of these types of pregnancies make it to full term, I didn't want to worry you with this if you were going to miscarry anyway. I'm sorry"

"Look Sherlock, I understand. I'm fine, the baby's fine, it's all fine" said Evie, she hugged him and he buried his face in her shoulder, holding her slightly too tight for comfort.

Sherlock and Evie talked to the doctor about 10 minutes later, who confirmed Sherlock's theory, "Yes your baby was effected by this genetic disorder, the baby must have inherited this, causing the rate of growth to increase over the usual levels but this actually saved your life, it caused an early labour to set in. If this hadn't happened then the placenta would have separated at full term and mostly likely caused fatality in yourself and possibly your baby as well, your body's reaction to the size of the baby actually saved both your lives" explained the doctor.

"Okay thank you" said Evie, the doctor nodded and then left. Evie turned to Sherlock but nothing else needed to be said. Evie and Ruby were both fine and the conversation was moved on.

Sherlock texted John,

_'Has Mycroft left? SH'_

_'Yes he has, shall we bring Ruby up? JW'_

_'Yes, please do SH'_

There was a knock on the door about 5 minutes later, Evie gestured for them to enter the room and John and Sarah came in carrying the baby carrier. John placed it down on the bed in front of Evie,

"Hey Sweetheart, how are you" said Evie quietly as she picked up Ruby. She hadn't held her properly since she was born. Most mothers would be concerned about the bonding process but Evie wasn't. Ruby had spent her first minutes with Sherlock and this bonding was, in Evie's opinion, even more important.

"Goodness" said Evie, "She really does looks like you Sherlock, her hair is just as black as yours but I can't get over her eyes, they _are _your eyes." Evie's smile beamed as she said this, she had hoped the baby would look like Sherlock.

"She's certainly a crier though" said John, "we were asked to leave the previous ward" said John, they all found this amusing.

The conversation continued along this path for the next half an hour until interrupted by the nurse.

"Hello sorry to interrupt you but we've had the birth certificate come through, we just need both parents to sign it and decide on the formalities." Evie gave Ruby to Sarah and they followed the nurse into her office to sign the paperwork. She handed them the forms and certificate and then headed back to her duties.

"Okay so are we sure we want to call her Ruby?" Asked Evie.

"Yes of course, that's her name now"

"What about a middle name?" Asked Evie. "If we didn't call her Ruby, what would you have called her?"

"I like Charlotte" said Sherlock, " I remember my first day in primary school, there was a girl on the bus called Charlotte, she was in year 6 but she was the only one nice enough to let me sit down. Mycroft had told them to make my life difficult, so they did…except her." This was one of those brief moments where Evie understood Sherlock's brain, the emotion, the feeling and the hurt that he had experienced as a child was portrayed in tiny snippets of information that she was lucky enough to here.

"Charlotte, I like it, Ruby Charlotte" said Evie, running this name through her head.

"Ruby Charlotte Miller Holmes" said Sherlock.

"No, I want her to be fully Holmes, no Miller" Said Evie, she was decided on this. "It's traditional, so she's just Holmes" Sherlock beamed at Evie, he really didn't care whether she was Miller-Holmes, Holmes-Miller or any other variation of the name, but what Evie had just said meant everything to him, the baby was a Holmes.


	11. Chapter 11- Baby Holmes in Baker Street

Sherlock and evie left St. Bart's early that morning. In the past year john had practically moved in with Sarah and they only returned to 221b baker street for social reasons but in the last few months when evie was getting particularly large they were always around the help but this was about to change again.

"Do you have everything you need? Like nappies?" asked John as they walked out of the hospital and into the cold winter air.

"Yep" said Evie gesturing to the large bag slung over her shoulder. They climbed into a cab together, Sherlock had the baby carrier containing Ruby, Evie had the baby bag and John and Sarah followed behind. As they pulled into Baker Street they saw the mob of press at their door. They had managed to keep the pregnancy out of the public eye and press but this was no longer true. Sherlock and John had slowly become an internet phenomenon with the website and press appearances and the baby was the next big thing.

"Oh Christ" said John as they drew closer.

"what are we going to do?" asked Evie, she never felt safe around the press when they were like this and was glad that Sherlock had the baby at this moment as the situation looked like it could get dangerous very quickly.

Sherlock wasn't going to stand for this, he could just about bear the press when it was just him and evie but now with Ruby in the equation is was a completely different matter.

"Exactly what they don't expect" said Sherlock, "they expect us to make some clever plan to get the baby in, but we won't, we'll simply get out and walk in. John if you wouldn't mind getting out first and moving them back as much as possible?" John nodded and Sherlock continued. "Evie, you take Ruby and ill cover you while you get in" Sherlock spoke calmly and without a hint of apprehension for what they were about to do.

The cab stopped, the press swarmed and John got out. He managed to clear enough space for Evie to climb out with the carrier, closely followed by Sherlock. By this time the press were having frenzy, the air was a buzz of questions being shouted such as, "Sherlock show us the baby!" "How will your work be affected by parenthood?!" "Miss Miller! What's Baby's name!"

The cameras were snapping photos frantically at the carrier but Sherlock had his arm around Evie's waist and with both of them in the way they managed to keep her hidden. They were all very keen but nowhere near as boisterous as usual. Cleverly Mrs Hudson had noticed what was happening in the street and opened the door right on cue and they swiftly walked in, shutting the door to the sounds of camera shutter and yelled questions.

"Wow that was not expected, how did they even find out?" asked Evie.

"I expect one of the nurses at the hospital saw the notes or birth certificate, made the connection and told the press for their 15 minutes of fame" said Sherlock scornfully. Ruby began to cry, she had been asleep in the cab but the noise and raised voices from our side had woken her. Since Evie was still holding the carrier, Sherlock bent down and scoped the baby up and then began to gently bounce her over his shoulder.

"Ah well at least everything's fine now" said Mrs Hudson, "Now let's go upstairs and have a nice cup of tea so I can meet her properly" she added, making cooing noises as Ruby behind Sherlock's shoulder.


	12. Chapter 12- The First 24 Hours

Once they had all settled in the living room Sherlock carefully handed Ruby to Mrs Hudson who was sitting on a chair borrowed from John's room, Sarah brought over tea and coffee and then sat in her usual chair next to Johns.

"Oh Mrs Hudson, I left loads of messages on your answer phone machines when you were visiting your sister, from when we were at the hospital, I didn't want you to worry" Said John as Mrs Hudson sat cuddling the baby.

"Yes I did dear, when I got back from my sisters I got about 10!" replied Mrs Hudson, who didn't look up from the baby as she smoke. "My my Sherlock she certainly looks like you!" Said Mrs Hudson.

"Mm yes, everyone seems to be saying that" said Sherlock

"Yes…the hair is the same, but her eyes are identical to yours" Said Mrs Hudson, "but I suppose that is to be expected" chuckled Mrs Hudson as she carried on talking. "I wonder if she has you mind though Sherlock" in that sentence Mrs Hudson had raised a very good point, Sherlock hadn't even thought that far ahead but he knew what he wanted the answer to be. Most of his childhood and school years had been spent alone as his other class members had been scared of his gifts. He wanted Ruby to be like Evie, clever and quick yet with the natural social skills Sherlock desperately lacked. He never wanted Ruby to experience the solitude and constant feeling of being alone which latched itself to his gift.

As the morning drifted by a few people dropped by to congratulate Sherlock and Evie, including Mycroft.

"Hello everyone" said Mycroft as he entered the flat, swinging his umbrella. John had let him in before returning to help Sarah prepare lunch. He didn't want to be drawn into another 'discussion' between Mycroft and Sherlock and this was the perfect exit.

"Hello Mycroft" said Sherlock calmly, he was more relaxed compared to their last meeting and you could easily hear this in his voice. "I assume you have come to visit the baby" Sherlock asked. Ruby was now back with Evie and was happily gurgling and babbling to herself as Babies do.

"Yes, I've come to make… peace" Said Mycroft, carefully searching for the last word. Evie accepted this, it was the closest thing Mycroft would ever get to an apology and she hoped Sherlock would accept this for Ruby's sake as they never know when his connections may come in useful in the future. Evie didn't mind Mycroft, he was relatively pleasant and his wife was lovely. Mycroft placed his umbrella in the corner of the room, walking forwards and talking John's seat opposite Sherlock. Evie shifted Ruby forwards and gave her to Sherlock, hoping this would start something.

"So, may I hold my Niece?" Asked Mycroft, the tone of his voice was 100% respectful and Evie had never heard him talk like this before. Sherlock nodded and stood, he was still holding Ruby who had now fell silent. Very carefully Sherlock placed the baby in Mycroft's arms, for anyone looking on at this situation it seemed like a very simple action, yet the underlying meaning and significance of the last few seconds were immeasurable. A few minutes John walked back into the room to find this unusual situation. "Um, lunch will be in about 20-30 minutes" john informed them. He sat back down and began to read the paper, not wanting to interrupt any further. Mycroft seemed relatively relaxed with the baby but Sherlock was perched on the edge of the sofa, ready to up at any time. The conversation picked up a bit but 10 minutes later Ruby began to cry, and Mycroft signalled to hand the child back.

"I think she's probably getting hungry now, there's a fresh bottle in the kitchen" Said Evie. Sherlock took Ruby back from Mycroft and headed to the kitchen in search of the bottle.

Sarah was in the kitchen, still watching and preparing the lunch, she really enjoyed cooking and this was her escape from the stress of work.

"Sarah, have you seen a bottle for Ruby?" Asked Sherlock, he was holding Ruby with one arm while the other searched the fridge.

"It's in the other one, I don't think Evie was too keen on having it near the eyeballs and severed heads" Said Sarah, chuckling.

"Fair point" agreed Sherlock, he walked to the other fridge and began to search.

"I thought Evie was breast feeding?" Asked Sarah, it was quite an awkward question but if she ever babysat, she would need to know.

"Yes she is" said Sherlock, "but she bottles it, breast milk is much better for a child's physical and mental development but highly inconvenient" Said Sherlock. "So it's easier to just have bottles of it for Ruby" Sherlock found the bottle, heated it and then headed back into the living room.

Sherlock sat back down next to Evie and began to feed Ruby. He sat her upright on his lap and, while gently supporting her neck and back with one hand, began to feed her. Sherlock was naturally very good with her and Evie felt no need to intervene, she had been connected to Ruby for the past 9 months, whereas Sherlock had only been with her for less than 24 hours.

"Sherlock, the other reason I came was because I have a request from our aunts" Said Mycroft, he felt now was a good time to raise the subject as Sherlock was partly preoccupied.

"What request?" Asked Sherlock bluntly in an irritated voice, he obviously felt that this subject did not deserve his full attention as his eyes had not left Ruby. He was still carefully feeding Ruby who was now making murmuring sounds as she swallowed.

"they wish for us to visit, they have heard that you and Evie are now quite an item and wish to meet her, this was of course, before the baby and to my understanding they had not heard but now even more reason to go" Finished Mycroft.

"So you will be going as well?" asked Sherlock, this question reflected no hint to whether Sherlock wanted Mycroft to come or not, it was a simple question to gather information.

"No, I and Lucinda have also been invited; I think it is linked to a family matter"

"Fine, When?" asked Sherlock, he couldn't be bothered to argue with Mycroft now as these things seemed so petty and trivial.

"Next Thursday, ill text you the details" Said Mycroft, he walked towards his umbrella, signalling his immediate departure. He made his excuses to John and Sarah who were still in the kitchen and was gone.

"Sherlock? You're Aunts?" Asked Evie.

"I'll explain later" said Sherlock, she knew he would tell her eventually and she sensed that it was something he didn't want to share with John and Sarah. Ruby, however, was oblivious to the recent happenings and was much more concerned about finishing her bottle. When she did, Sherlock lifted her over his shoulder and began to complete the impossible task of burping the baby. This was probably the only thing he was unable to do with her and it just took practise. He began to pace the room, gently bouncing and patting as he went, but had no luck. As Sherlock gently rubbed and patted the baby's back, John and Sarah brought in lunch, handing a plate to Evie and placing one on the table for Sherlock. After a few minutes Sherlock triumphantly burped Ruby, probably winding her in the process but it was all down to practise and Ruby hadn't seemed to notice. Ruby soon drifted off and Sherlock walked off to put her to sleep. He carefully laid her in the cot by their bed and turned the baby monitor on. Sherlock stood for a few minutes, watching his baby. She slept quietly and to him, looked more like Evie. He gently leant down and kissed the baby on the forehead before whipping dribbled milk from her chin with his thumb. In that moment he thought to himself, '_you never know how much you can love someone before you've whipped up their dribble' _he chuckled softly to his thoughts before picking up the pairing monitor. He walked towards the door and softly shut it behind him as he left.

**Please leave reviews or pm me! The latest review I received really pushed me on to write this chapter so thank you to whoever is was :) **

**They are really great to here and make my day :) **


	13. Chapter 13- Quiet Before a Storm

Quiet Before the Storm;

By 8:00pm John and Sarah decided it was time to leave. They had talked about this before and decided Sherlock and Evie needed to flat to themselves for the a few weeks when the baby first arrived. Plus neither of them wanted to be kept awake all night by the baby's cries. "Right, we'd better be off" Announced John, Ruby had slept twice through the course of the day and was now happily back in the baby carrier.

"What?" Asked Sherlock.

"I'm going back to Sarah's, good luck tonight; she's certainly got a pair of lungs on her" Said John. And with that he and Sarah left, not wanting to stay to hear Sherlock's argument. The flat door shut and they were left alone. Ruby gurgled to herself; she would soon need another feed. Evie turned on the TV and began to watch something while Sherlock picked up Ruby. They hadn't set out a schedule l for her but didn't really feel she needed one yet. Evie stood up leaving Sherlock on the sofa rocking Ruby.

"I was thinking of doing pasta and chicken for dinner?" suggested Evie, she had been told by her midwife that she must eat at least 3 healthy meals a day when she was pregnant and carry this on while she was breastfeeding, Sherlock who ate the minimum his body would allow, had begun to copy these actions and they had now formed a habit.

"Yeah sure sounds good" said Sherlock from the living room. Ruby was getting restless and Sherlock guessed she needing feeding.

"Eves, I think Ruby needs a feed" Called Sherlock from the living room.

"Okay" replied Evie, he checked the fridge for a bottle then said, "we must have used the last, we're out" Said Evie, as she put the chicken pieces on to fry. Sherlock stood, talking as he walked," do you want to feed her then; I'll carry on with this" Said Sherlock as he walked into the kitchen. Evie nodded, "Come on then little one!" Said Evie smiling, as she scooped up Ruby from Sherlock's arms.

Sherlock carried on with dinner and Evie took Ruby back into the lounge. They had agreed that Ruby would only be breastfed when it was just them, both Evie and Sherlock found it inappropriate and very uncomfortable when other parents breastfed their babies in company and therefore did not want to inflict it on anyone else, plus, as well as Evie knew John and Sarah, there was a limit to any friendship.

Ruby was asleep by the time Sherlock had prepared dinner; he had never been very good at timing cooking and had managed to forget to start the pasta while cooking the chicken. This always puzzled Evie, she thought that with Sherlock's brain he of all people would remember but simple home-based tasks seemed to baffle him. Ruby had fallen asleep in the carrier and was quietly sleeping when Sherlock and Evie started to eat. Evie flicked through the channels until she found something good to watch.

"I've sorted out enough bottles for Ruby for the night, I thought that would be easier" Said Evie once they had finished.

"Yes actually it probably is" said Sherlock.

"Okay, how is this going to work tonight? I'm still pretty tired from the delivery, I keep forgetting it was only about 36 hrs ago" Said Evie, she had no idea how much Ruby would sleep that night, luckily Sherlock didn't sleep much anyway but that was voluntary and not scheduled by a new-born.

"I don't really know" Said Sherlock, he had never done this either and wasn't 100% sure what to expect. "As long as we have Nappies and bottle, then it can't be that bad" Evie thought this was the understatement of the year but since Sherlock was feeling optimistic about it, didn't argue.

"Okay, we'll give it ago tonight and go from there"

Evie and Sherlock headed for their room at about 10:30pm. Ruby's cot was already in the room and Sherlock brought her in, still a sleep in the carrier. Evie had got changed for bed a little earlier but found a long sleeved knitted jumper to throw on. Sherlock found his trackies and a top and quietly undressed. Ruby was a ticking bomb that could go off any minutes and neither of her parents wanted to wake her.

"Shall I put her in the cot or leave her?" Asked Sherlock in low whisper.

"Um, put her in the cot" Evie whispered back as she checked they had everything. Sherlock quietly knelt down and picked Ruby up, she was a big baby yet still small enough for Sherlock to hold her with only his hands. He stood, bringing her close to his body as he walked. He paused, Evie walked over and kissed Ruby on the forehead, she gently stroked the baby's face and said, "Sweet dreams sweetheart" smiling contentedly as she did. Sherlock was now cradling her against his chest and Evie returned to her final checks. Sherlock placed Ruby in the cot, kissing her very softly on the head and said "Goodnight Ruby". He smiled down at the sleeping baby in the cot, _his baby_, he had never felt love like this before and in that moment knew, he would never go back.


	14. Chapter 14- Sherlock's Meltdown

**Sorry I haven't updated in a while! But here is another chapter and I hope you like it! **

Sherlock was startled into consciousness. He could hear the child crying on his left and began to move. Evie was also awake and turned over so her head was resting on Sherlock's shoulder, she murmured and then began to sit up.

"Ruby?" murmured Evie as she walked over to the cot, the Baby noticed her approach but carried on crying. Sherlock dragged himself out of bed and joined Evie at the cot. Evie picked up Ruby and said, "she needs a new nappy and a bottle, I'll heat the bottle if you do the nappy" said Evie to Sherlock, this started as a question but Sherlock thought it unwise to argue. He took Ruby from Evie who then walked off into the kitchen, leaving Sherlock to sort the nappy.

"Right Ruby, I guess this is up to me then" said Sherlock talking to the oblivious new-born. After 10 minutes, 4 nappies, several baby wipes and a flood of cursing, Sherlock had changed his first nappy.

"oh my god Sherlock, what happened in here?!" said Evie bringing the now heated bottle in, the changing table and draws were a mess, discarded nappies and baby wipes occupied the surrounding floor.

"In the books, changing a nappy seems a very basic task, but In practise it is far harder" explained Sherlock, he was sitting on the bed cradling Ruby, who was lying quietly in her father's arms. Evie laughed and then handed the bottle to Sherlock. They sat on the bed together until Ruby had finished, Evie took the bottle back into the kitchen and Sherlock put Ruby down.

Evie and Sherlock returned to bed, "Sherlock, can you explain you're aunts please?" asked Evie as they lay side by side staring at the ceiling, "and why they suddenly want to see us" Sherlock stared up at the ceiling but began to talk, "they sort of raised us, when our mother died, our father became reserved and unemotional, we barely saw him, but they are the last people I would let raise a child" said Sherlock, he spoke quietly yet Evie could see the emotional drain it had on him to even talk about his family. Evie nodded and Sherlock continued, "they always said that my 'gift' was a curse and that I would never have a personal life, in their opinion, friends were out of the question, so now they have seen us in the papers, I assume this will be them judging you, seeing for themselves, like a freak show" Sherlock almost spat out the last words as if they tasted bad, he flung himself up so he was standing and rushed out the room. Evie got up as well, checked on Ruby who was now sleeping then followed Sherlock into the lounge.

Sherlock was pacing the living room, running his fingers violently through his hair, getting more and more frustrated "and now Ruby's the next thing! A baby! They never even imagined I would have child! They scorned me for my character-" Sherlock was now ranting out of control, winding himself up with every word. He spat the words out faster than thought, not stopping to breath, "they scorned me and now want to see the freak for themselves! I will not raise Ruby like they raised me! They say everyone subconsciously raises there child in the same pattern they themselves were raised! I will not!" yelled Sherlock, he was completely fired up now, his eyes were blazing and Evie didn't trust him not to do something stupid.

"Sherlock!" Yelled Evie, she had dealt with him in these states of hysteria a few times before, but very as bad as this. Sherlock stopped darting around the room, stood and stared at the women who called his name. He was now fixed on her, all the emotion he had built up in him was now focused on directly on her.

Evie didn't trust him, Sherlock wasn't Sherlock when he was like this, he was unpredictable.

Evie stood totally still, bear footed in the living room, staring at this man, "Sherlock, you will never be like them" Said Evie, Sherlock's gaze softened slightly and she felt she could approach him. She slowly walked over to him, meeting his stare head-on. "We will bring up Ruby our own way, you mustn't worry" said Evie whispering. Sherlock broke, his eyes began to well up but he started to fight this.

"No!" Sherlock yelled, spinning back around the room, clutching his head and grimacing. "It's my head! It never stops! I'll turn her into me! in to a hollow insensitive, unloved, repulsive being!" Evie couldn't stand this, she walked over to Sherlock who was still clutching as his head and waited.

"Sherlock…" began Evie, she tried to guide his hands away from his head, he resisted so she gently held onto them. "You are loved, I love you…" Evie was staring right into his eyes now, the same eyes her daughter had. "you are _not _insensitive, how could you ever think that?" said Evie, she didn't understand how Sherlock's brain worked and most times she wanted to know, but right in this moment, she could think of nothing worse. Sherlock eyes began to fill again; he was physically and emotionally drained and would eventually break.

"Evie…" this was as far as he got, his voice crackled and a few tears streamed down his face, he launched himself as her, burying his face in her shoulder in a tight hug. Evie wrapped her arms around him, he had such suffering in his past, most of it she didn't know yet but she didn't need to, everything was reflected through this moment, Sherlock Holmes was human, damaged- yes, unpredictable- yes, but very much human. They pulled away from each other and Sherlock collapsed to his knees in exhaustion. Evie knelt down, placing her hands on his knees, bringing herself close. Sherlock's face was stressed and distorted by his upset, Evie brushed his dark curls out of his face then said,

"Sherlock please, never think those things" she was close to tears herself, unsure how to feel about Sherlock's outburst, she couldn't hold them back and the tears began to silently stream down her face. Sherlock saw this and realised her had hurt her.

"Evie, I love you" said Sherlock pulling her into another hug, "I will never not love you, you have changed me, I know how to feel, how to express myself, please, never leave me"

"I'll never leave, I promise" Said Evie, her eyes where tightly shut, trying to fight the tears back. They stayed like this for a few minutes, kneeing and hugging, in utter silence. After a few minutes Sherlock pulled away from Evie, "I will never let her be as unhappy as I was as a child, I will not raise her like I was" Said Sherlock in a quiet voice. They were both kneeing on the carpet, faces only a few inches away.

"Never, we will bring her up differently, we will screw her up in our way specific way" joked Evie. Sherlock let out a deep chuckle and with this, she knew he had recovered. Sherlock leaned forwards, placing his forehead against Evie's, gently kissing her in the process.

**Please leave a review, they keep me writing :) This chapter isn't really relevant to the story line but I hope its nice to read anyway :)**


	15. Chapter 15-The Babysitter and The Letter

The first days of parenthood seemed to merge into one never ending drudge of feeds, new nappies and ear splitting cries. Evie and Sherlock hadn't spoke about that night since the event, there wasn't any point, everything had been said and now they needed to focus on their daughter. Ruby was 3 weeks old and growing fast.

"Evie? Are you in the kitchen?" Called Sherlock as he left their room, Ruby had woken up and he was now carrying her into the living room. He put her in her carrier, she was just starting to try and hold up her head on her own and now new exactly who Evie and Sherlock were and more importantly, who wasn't them.

"yeah I am? Is Ruby okay?" replied Evie, she was making the first cups of coffee of the day. Sherlock appeared in the doorway.

"She's fine" he said smiling, she got to see this side of Sherlock that no one else quite got to and she could never thank him enough for that. Sherlock walked over behind Evie and put his hands on her waist, resting his chin on the back of her shoulder.

"hmm…Sherlock" Said Evie laughing. She twisted around in his arms so they faced each other, locking her arms around his neck as she did. "Is there something you wanted?" Asked Evie, teasing him. She didn't need an answer. Sherlock lent in and kissed her, their bodies got closer and it became more passionate.

"For god's sake you two! Your parents now!" Sherlock and Evie broke away from each other in a split second and darted their eyes towards the voice. John stood in the doorway of the kitchen looking awkward yet revelling in his findings. Sherlock glared at him, John was wearing a smirk with pride and Evie couldn't keep a straight face. John was at the point of laughing but holding it in said, "Sherlock, am I interrupting something?" Sherlock released Evie who was, up until that point, tightly wrapped in his arms. He stepped away from her, took his coffee from the counter and then lent back awkwardly on the cupboards. John was still smirking at Sherlock, and Evie felt the need to leave them so went back into the living room to check on Ruby.

Sherlock and John were standing, staring at each other, John still smirking and Sherlock pretending to be interested in his now ruined coffee.

"Honestly Sherlock, I know you're adjusting well to being a father, but one is enough surely?" Joked John, he enjoyed the moments when he could tease Sherlock who was otherwise, a rather arrogant arse most of the time.

"Shut up John" Snapped Sherlock, yet he couldn't hold back his amusement and It broke free as a large grin across his face. John began to laugh as him, "Ohh..Shut up" Joked Sherlock but this only made John laugh more.

Evie could hear their laughing coming from the kitchen as she rocked Ruby on her knee. Sherlock and John joined her in the living room and they began to discuss the day's plans, "What's happening today?" Asked Evie, Ruby began to whine and she gently began to bounce her, "Hey Baby girl, shhh" Said Evie, waiting for Sherlock's reply.

"I don't really know, I haven't had a case in ages!" Said Sherlock.

"Well, the type of things that call for your attention don't really come in weekly doses Sherlock, It does vary" Said John sarcastically. Evie chuckled but Sherlock wasn't very amused. Ruby began to whine again and Evie remembered what it was.

"Oh, we left her bear down at Mrs. Hudson's last night" Said Evie,

"A bear? But she's 3 weeks old?" Said John, surprised by this.

"Yes but there has been great scientific proof that giving a baby a support in the form of a toy in their early weeks helps to reduce their anxiety levels when they are left to sleep alone" Said Sherlock, he had been doing some reading on child development and had many ideas for Ruby's first year. Ruby began to whine even more and John said, "I'll get it for her, I need to see Mrs Hudson anyway, I said I would look in next time I was around. Come on angel!" Said John to the baby, reaching out his arms to take her. Evie happily passed Ruby over and John carried her out of the flat.

Once the flat door closed Evie looked at Sherlock, "My sister offered to babysit sometime, maybe we should take her up on that tonight?" Said Evie.

"uhm, that might be a good idea actually" Said Sherlock, Evie moved forwards and kissed him lightly on the lips, he corrected himself and said, "A very good idea" and then kissed her again.

John came back in a few minutes later, "There we go Ruby, you have your bear back." John handed Ruby to Sherlock before sitting down in his chair.

Evie headed into their room to ring her sister. "Hey Mia! How are you?" said Evie as her sister picked up.

"Evie! Hey! Yeah I'm great thanks! How are you? And Sherlock and the baby?"

"We're good thanks Mia"

"Have you heard from Mum?"

"No why?"

"Ugh, she's being so…Mum. I think another family reunion is planning to rear its ugly head"

"Oh god not another one, me and Sherlock are still recovering from the last!" Joked Evie. "Look, remember you offered to babysit a while back? Could we take you up on that offer tonight?"

"Yeah of course! I haven't met Ruby properly yet"

"Okay great thanks Mia! What time shall I drop her round?"

"Oh, anytime really, how about 6:00pm ish?"

"Ah that's great, thank you!" said Evie, "See you then!"

"Bye!"

Evie reappeared from their room, John was busy in the kitchen and Sherlock still had Ruby.

"Sorted. Mia is happy to babysit tonight, I said we would drop her off at six" said Evie.

**That Evening:**

"Evie!" squeaked Mia as she opened the door to her sister.

"Hello" said Evie, receiving a quick kiss on the cheek from Mia. Sherlock loitered in the doorway feeling rather awkward again. Evie walked into Mia's hallway with the baby carrier containing Ruby before gesturing to Sherlock to follow her with the bag. Sherlock didn't know Evie's family particularly well, he knew full well that her mother was not a fan of him and thankfully the subject of their daughter had not been broached with them yet. Sherlock was always quiet around her family, taking the view that if uncertain, keep quiet, it was hard but completely necessary. As they entered the hallway Sherlock stayed relatively close to Evie,

"Sherlock don't worry" whispered Evie, Mia had darted off into the kitchen to find the email from her mother and she took this opportunity to talk to Sherlock, "Mia has qualifications in new-born and infant child care and development, if Ruby even sneezes, Mia will know why."

"I know, but it's still difficult" said Sherlock in a low whisper.

"I know but it will be good to have a break for a bit" said Evie just before Mia walked back in.

"Hi Sherlock, how's parenthood fairing up? I was surprised when Evie told me I must admit" Sherlock raised an eyebrow at this, everyone seemed to be 'surprised' or it was 'unexpected' or in John's case, 'what the bloody hell?!'

"Ah here it is Evie" Said Mia, handing Evie the printed email. "Arrived this morning, from Mum, I think she knows" Evie put down the baby carrier and began to read the letter.

_Dear Amelia,_

_I have recently received word that your older sister gave __birth to a daughter a few weeks ago; the child's father is a Mr Sherlock Holmes, whom I have previously met. The baby apparently is a spitting image of him, however I am not currently concerned with the social formalities, of course this man's relationship with your sister has always concerned me as I personally find him unsuitable and now their relationship is bound by a child, I have no option but to except this._

_However I am more concerned with the fact that she did not inform me of her pregnancy or the fact that she and Sherlock were at the point in their relationship to consider starting a family, I am therefore arranging a meeting in the foreseeable future for you, your sister and if possible, your brother to attend. _

_With Love,_

_You're Mother. _

_Petunia Miller. _

"Oh god" sad Evie, "What the hell does she mean by that? She's 'concerned'? 'unsuitable'?!"

"I know, I think she's planning something, the women never gives up" said Mia, taking the email back from her sister. Sherlock had flicked through the email over Evie's shoulder and was even more confused than she was. _What did she mean? 'unsuitable'? _

"Anyway, how's baby Ruby?" Said Mia, kneeling down to tickle the baby's cheeks. Ruby giggles delightfully and Mia beamed.

"She's pretty good, sleeping a bit better now" Said Evie.

"She's just attempting to raise her head herself as well" Added Sherlock.

"Oooh excellent!" Said Mia picking up Ruby and Sherlock handed her the bag. "Okay great so what time do you want to pick her up tomorrow?"

Evie looked surprised not realising that Mia offered the whole night, "Ohh umm, whatever time suits you"

"Okay, how about 10? That gives me time to write a bit of her behaviour and stuff, for my diploma."

"Okay, that's great thanks Mia" Said Evie, she took Ruby off Mia and gave her a kiss goodbye before handing her back. Sherlock waved at the baby and then they left.


	16. Chapter 16- The Perfect Evidence

**Thank you to my new followers, its been so nice to log in and find the number going up so thank you!**

As they climbed back into the car, Evie felt rather lost now, she had been thrown into motherhood, never having a moment to decide exactly how she felt about it yet in that moment when she had the chance to be free of that responsibility again, she didn't want to. Sherlock turned to her and said, "What shall we do now? Dinner?"

"Yes, that would be great" said Evie; she hadn't been out properly since she was pregnant as everything just seemed to make her feel ill. Sherlock pulled up outside a small Italian restaurant, he had helped the owner of the restaurants cousin escape exportation a few years ago and as they entered the restaurant, they certainly knew about it.

"Sherlock!" Shouted Lorenzo from the other side of the room.

"Oh god", muttered Sherlock to Evie before the man launched himself at him.

"How good to see you ya!" started Lorenzo, Sherlcok was relatively reserved yet the man hadn't noticed.

"And you! I see you in the papers ya! You miss miller!" Said the man, not giving Evie enough time to reply before he gave her a strong hug and a kiss on each cheek. Evie stood slightly shocked yet recovered enough to talk.

"Oh yes, that's me…umm are we in the papers? Evie asked gently, it had been a few weeks since they had been stalked by the press yet Evie already knew the answer. Lorenzo walked them over to a quiet table in the corner and then began to talk again.

"Yes yes! You and Sherlock and the baby! You both in this morning's paper! Front page! You with a carrier and Sherlock with you! Big stars now! "Lorenzo seemed very excited by the whole thing and that Sherlock was now in his restaurant.

"Anyway, I leave you now, you order, everything free for you two!"

"Oh no we couldn't-" interrupted Evie, she hated it when people did that yet the man strongly insisted and she gave in, knowing when she was fighting a losing battle. Once Lorenzo left with their orders Evie turned back to Sherlock. "Oh god, that's how my mother knew "Said Evie, "we were on the front page of the paper Sherlock and our baby, was as well!" She was upset that she didn't even know this, they never got the paper yet she wished she had known.

"Why are the press so fascinated by you?" Asked Evie but she knew the answer. The man sitting in front of her, the father of her child, was an impossible genius, able to deduce a whole life story in under 5 minutes, he was a fascination and now their daughter was as well. The great Sherlock Holmes had had a baby which meant there must be a mother, which was where she came into it. The heart has always been a fascination and people had always speculated about Sherlock's heart and whether they were a couple or just flat shares but the baby was it. The ultimate tie. There was no denying their relationship now that Ruby was in the picture. The perfect evidence. Evie had zoned out but quickly came back to reality.

"We're going to have to try and be more careful" said Sherlock yet this was much easier said than done.

"But how? We can't just stop going out" Said Evie. Sherlock was staring out the window but then switched back around.

"No we can't…" he trailed off, "no exactly, we can't, so we don't. That's it! We cheat them at their own game! A photo is only worth as much as a paper with give them, the more there are of them, the lower the value and the less them will make and therefore, they will very soon lose interest and move onto something that gets them more. So, we give them more. We were reserved and protective of her, putting ourselves between her and them, effectively ruining a picture but, if they can get the photos they want, then they will become less rare, less valuable and therefore loose interest. That's my theory anyway, but I'm not very happy to actually put it into practise."

"No neither am I" Said Evie, she didn't want their baby to become an object of public interest and she knew Sherlock hated that concept even more than her but it looked like they didn't really have a choice. It was now beyond the point of prevention and into damage control.

"we might just have to let them have a few, the more we protect her, when they do get the chance they will swarm, yet at least if they get a few every now and then, then hopefully, he will become less of an interest as time goes on" said Evie, when she thought back to how she imagined parenthood, she thought she would be worrying about simple things, not how to stop your baby being swarmed by the press, yet she never imagined someone like Sherlock would be the father, and with him, nothing was ever quite straight forward. Their food arrived at the point and Lorenzo began to talk about it again.

"On the paper, you are arriving home from hospital, with the baby" he said, placing the cutlery down in the meals.

"Oh yes I remember that" said Sherlock, "how many photos were there?" he asked.

"Oh, about 4 or 5, different stages of you getting out the cab and into the flat" Said Lorenzo, he finished laying the table for them then said, "I'll leave you to eat now" he walked off and they began to eat. They walked throughout the evening covering many topics and the evening consisted of many laughs and the occasional interruption from Lorenzo. They seemed to be back to the way they were before Ruby came along yet it was now different. Ruby had filled in any uncertainly they had before, Evie still couldn't decide whether this was a good thing or not. They had never discussed a future really, there had always been a few jokes from Lestrade and Anderson about when they would be trying the knot which often ended in uncomfortable situations but the worst moment was when Evie met Molly. They were in the morgue and she was faced with the awkward situation of explain exactly what her relationship was with Sherlock while standing in the corridor. Once they had finished their meals and drinks, they thanked Lorenzo who seemed happier than them about the evening and then they slipped away. They walked out into the street, it was now dark and they could only just faintly see the outline of the defender.

"So what now?" suggested Sherlock, this question had a very clear answer and with that Sherlock pulled her into a close kiss whilst half walking to the car. Evie wrapped her arms around his neck; this was her default setting now and had almost become an unconscious reaction.

"Hmm I think that answers your question" said Evie teasing him as they broke away at the car.

"Home?" asked Sherlock, Evie nodded and with that, they climbed into the car and were gone.

**A special thank you to Samwise221b who pre-read this chapter for me :) **

**Please review if you could, its lovely to see them and here what people think!**


	17. Chapter 17- The Morning After

Evie rang the doorbell to Mia's house. The morning was sunny yet bleak and there was still dew on the grass outside.

"Come on Mia" chattered Evie, she was wearing a thick navy knitted jumper and skinny jeans yet was shivering slightly. Sherlock on the other hand seemed unaffected by the colder morning temperatures, he was wearing his famous coat and scarf with the collar turned up, outlining his carved cheekbones perfectly. "God I hope Ruby's okay" said Evie, Sherlock looked rather concerned at this remark, he had thought that Evie was 100% confident in this and now she doubted it.

"Should I be concerned?" asked Sherlock but just as Evie was about to answer Mia opened the door with a screaming infant in her arms.

"Hey Evie" said Mia sounding exhausted. Ruby was balling her eyes out but on seeing her parents she paused, scanned their faces and then carried on whimpering. "She's been crying since 6:00am this morning" said Mia, trying to sooth the baby.

"Oh god, you should have called" said Evie, they stepped into the hallway and removed their coats while Mia still clung to the baby. Ruby had stopped screaming with such force at the site of her parents but was still crying.

"The bag is upstairs" said Mia to Evie; she headed upstairs to retrieve it. Sherlock and Mia were left standing in the hallway to the chorus of Ruby's cries.

"Should I take her" Sherlock suggested, Mia happily agreed and carefully handed Ruby to him. Sherlock began to gently bounce the baby, in Ruby's first days he had learnt a pattern of bounces and swings that usually quietened her crying and now was the perfect time to put this into practise. Ruby's cries changed to quiet whimpers and within a few minutes, Sherlock's gently 'shushing' had almost got Ruby to sleep.

"Wow Sherlock, how did you do that?" said Mia, Sherlock looked up confused, unaware of what he had done to trigger a 'wow'.

"I thought that one of the basic jobs of being a parent to a young baby was knowing how to recognise and stop their cries" Mia didn't answer this and walked off to help Evie, leaving Sherlock looking slightly bewildered.

Mia found Evie upstairs gathering together the baby stuff.

"Hey Mia, does Sherlock have Ruby?" asked Evie.

"Yeah he does, he's almost got her to sleep" Said Mia, "how on earth does he do that? I've been trying to get her to sleep for the past 4 hours"

"I know, he's great with her, it's really nice actually, as long as one of us is around, she barely ever cries" said Evie, finishing the packing and lifting the bag onto her shoulder. "Have you heard any more from Mum?"

"God yeah, she rang me last night to check I had received her email, heard the baby crying, demanded to know why I was looking after her and why you and Sherlock had 'abandoned' her and then finished by ordering me to ring you when you came to pick her up" Said Mia.

"No, what the hell does she want? I am not ringing her now" stated Evie.

"no please, stay and we'll ring her, else I'll get another email asking why we didn't" said Mia, she didn't like dealing with their mother on her own, Evie had always been the stronger one when it came to standing up to her when they were teenagers and that was still the case.

"Okay fine" said Evie, they walked downstairs to join Sherlock who was now cradling a sleeping Ruby in his arms. "I've got to phone my mother" said Evie in the most irritated tone imaginable.

"Why?" asked Sherlock in a concerned tone, it was very clear that Evie's mother didn't like him and he didn't want her anywhere near their baby.

"Because she'll give Mia a bollocking if I don't" said Evie pacing the room as she dialled the number. Evie only ever swore when she was really angry or frustrated and both circumstances were usually related to her mother. Evie stood close to the doorway of the living room, holding the phone to her ear, listening to the dooming rings. Mia walked over so she would be able to hear the conversation and Sherlock was standing on the other side of the room still gently swaying while holding Ruby.

"Evess put it on speaker phone, I want to hear this" said Sherlock, Evie did so just before her mother picked up.

"Hello Mum" said Evie reluctantly. She placed the phone down on the coffee table so it took centre stage before moving over to stand with Sherlock.

"Hello Evie Is your sister with you?" echoed the voice on the other end.

"Yes, Hi Mum" said Mia.

"Ah excellence, first thing-" Evie rolled her eyes; this was going to be a long conversation and easily the most irritating one of the month. "Why was Mia looking after your daughter last night?"

"Uhh!" expressed Evie, she could not believe this, why on earth was this one of her mother's concerns?! "That's really not relevant!" said Evie to her mother.

"I think it is! Why did you leave your baby with your sister?" replied Petunia, both Evie and her mother now had raised voices.

"No Mum, it's really not, Ruby is none of your responsibility!"

"How can you say that? I am-"

"No Mum, you are not anything at the moment, Sherlock and I are responsible-"

"Haaa!" Her mother cut her off with a high shriek. "I wouldn't say that you were old enough or mature enough to be a mother and as for Sherlock!"

At this point, Sherlock thought he better make his presence known, "Um excuse me, we are perfectly capable of dealing with this" said Sherlock in a firm voice, it wasn't raised but didn't leave any room for compromise.

"Ah, your there" said Petunia.

"Yes he is Mum, why on earth would he not be, and what do you mean by, I'm not old enough, I'm 28!-Look", said Evie, she didn't want this to spiral off into a full argument and her mother was perfectly capable of doing that. "I'm not going to discuss this with you over the phone and especially not with the baby here" there was a moments silence after this was said, Sherlock looked reassuringly at Evie and she began to feel more comfortable.

"Another thing, why did you not tell me that you were expecting a baby?"

"It must have slipped my mind" said Evie sarcastically and Sherlock chuckled.

"I didn't know that you were in that sort of position to have a baby, or what you are planning-"

"look, Mum what was it you wanted to talk to us about?" cut in Evie, her mother clearly had no concept of an accidental pregnancy and she didn't really want to tell her very forward thinking mother that that was exactly what her granddaughter was.

"Ah yes, but this is not over Evie. Well this actually links in rather well, you're…situation, has now made me sure that we need to have a family gathering, nothing too big to start off with just you and your siblings" Mia looked at Evie with only an expression that could be triggered by their mother.

"Fine…" said Evie now holding her forehead, "when?"

"This afternoon, at 2:00pm." Stated Petunia.

"What?!" interjected Mia. "No Mum, that's too soon"

"No exceptions Mia, Evie, I expect to see you this afternoon, your brothers are already here" Evie laughed slightly at this, if she knew Daniel and Will, there would be a war declared before afternoon tea was served.

"Fine, goodbye." Finished Evie and she ended the call. Ruby was now fast asleep and Sherlock gently placed her in the carrier before joining the conversation.

"Are we going to go?" asked Sherlock, he didn't really know where that conversation left them.

"I don't think we have a choice" stated Evie, "besides, I don't want Mia getting the wrap for us not turning up" said Evie, she loved her siblings greatly, especially her sister, they all shared the same irritations with their mother but since Evie was the oldest, she had taken the brunt of it for them.

"Oh thanks Evie, Dan and Will will be too busy mucking about to pay much attention to Mum"

"Okay well that's settled, we'll see you there" said Evie putting on her coat before replacing the bag on her shoulder. At this Sherlock put his coat on before picked up the carrier and Mia walked them to the door.

"Well see you later" said Mia to Evie giving her a hug, Evie happily received the hug and turned to put the stuff in the car. Then came to awkward moment of possible affection towards Sherlock, Mia looked like she was heading for a hug but Sherlock gave a node and a smile before following Evie to the car with the carrier in tow. As they got in the car Evie chuckled, "god I can't believe this, Sherlock Holmes meets the family, when faced with my mother or Moriarty, I expect Moriarty is an easy choice"

"You have no idea" said Sherlock with a wink, he put the car in gear and drove off.

**Thank you for reading! please leave a review, its great to here people's views or any suggestions that you might have! and i love to receive Pm's :)**


	18. Chapter 18- Can Of Worms

The famous defender pulled up outside Evie's family home. She and Sherlock exchanged looks, neither of them particularly wanted to be there and this was clear from their expressions. Ruby was wearing a cream baby grow and socks, Evie knew her mother would want her in some garish dress unsuitable for a 4 week old baby some Evie choice something simple. Evie rang the door, ruby was lying quietly in the carrier and Sherlock's trench coat collar was turned up fully, just as Evie wanted it.  
"Ready?" Asked Sherlock winking at Evie.  
"Never" she replied. Sherlock chuckled deeply just as the door was opened. The door was opened by a tall blonde man of around 25, he was Evie's younger brother Daniel, she was the oldest, followed by the twins, will and Dan and then Mia was the baby of the four.  
"Alright Evie, how's it going" asked Dan wrapping Evie in a tight hug, Dan had always understood envies relationship with their mother more than the others and shared most of her opinions on the women.  
"Good thanks Dan" said Evie, clearly happier now. "This is Sherlock" said Evie, Sherlock shook his hand and Dan seemed happy with him.  
"Ah yes the famous Sherlock, you're quite a celeb" added Dan.  
"Hmm, well I try not to be" said Sherlock, he was trying to be polite but his instincts were creeping in.  
"Ah and this must be the baby" added Dan, they walked through the hall.  
"Um yeah" said Evie.  
"Mum knows right? You weren't just going to drop in and not mention you'd had a kid"  
"Ha-ha no, if only, we were caught by the press when we left the hospital, it's because she's Sherlock's, the papers are obsessed with him" added Evie.  
"Ah right, a bit of a pain?" Joked Dan.  
"You have no idea" added Sherlock. They walked through the house and came to the back garden; it was a beautifully landscaped plot of 1 1/2 acres,

"Um will and I were just fixing up the summer house but Mia's with mum and I think they were just about to have tea" Dan pulled a face at this and Evie agreed that tea was not a very exciting prospect. Sherlock was tagging along at this point, he knew exactly what role he took in this family but that itself caused problems, he was the half famous, clearly unsuitable boyfriend who also just happened to knock her up.  
"Okay well we'd better face mum, see you later" said Evie.  
"Oh yeah I want a proper cuddle with her later!" Shouted Dan as he ran away across the lawn.  
Evie chuckled as they headed round the corner to their 'impending doom'.  
"Hm yours brothers certainly pleasanter than your mother" said Sherlock.  
"Ha-ha yes he is" added Evie, "can you take her for a moment?"  
"Yeah sure" said Sherlock lifting the carrier from Evie's hand as they turned the corner onto the garden patio.  
"Evie darling!" Petunia called from the table.  
"Helloo mother" said Evie half-heartedly. "This is Ruby"  
"Ahh!" Squeaked Petunia at the site of the baby. She noticed that Sherlock was holding the carrier. Sherlock did not look overly impressed, he held onto the carrier, waiting for Evie and more importantly, only Evie to remove her.  
"So let me meet my first grandchild!" Said petunia, she seemed to be in a fairly good mood and Evie wasn't going to upset that.  
Evie unclipped ruby from the carrier and under Sherlock's watchful eye, placed the baby in her mother's arms. Sherlock and Evie sat down opposite exchanging looks of 'Is this a good idea?' Being answered by, 'Believe me, whens it's not, you'll know.'  
Petunia sat quietly cooing away at the baby who seemed to be tolerating the stranger for now.  
Mia came back with tea for four, placing a cup in front of each person. Evie knew Sherlock wouldn't really want tea and neither did she but he accepted it and Evie could see he was trying to get along.  
"So, are you still living on Baker Street?" Asked Mia,  
"Yeah in 221B" answered Evie.  
"Oh you too live together?" interjected Petunia, sounding surprised.  
This baffled Evie, how could her mother think that two people would plan to have a baby if they weren't even living together? Her mother was a mix of quirks and illogical thinking that resulted in a rather inconsistence sense of reason.  
"Um yes, Mum I moved in with Sherlock quite a while ago"  
"Oh we you never told me, is that place suitable to raise a family?" Evie subtly rolled her eyes with an expression of, '_and that is why I never tell her anything' _to Sherlock who was also getting irritated by this women, his fingers were beginning to tap fiercely on the arm of the chair and his mind seemed to be fighting his mouth not to speak, Evie had noticed this and frankly didn't blame him, she was impressed he had got this far without ripping someone's head off.  
Sherlock decided to answer this suggestive question,  
"If you are asking if it's suitable to house a new-born baby and us then yes, it's suitable"  
"Hmm" was the answer from petunia. She was still cradling ruby who seemed to be getting a bit edgy and Evie suspected she might need her nappy changing soon.  
"I'm just going to get the bag from the car, can I have the keys?" asked Evie as she stood up, Sherlock didn't look comfortable with the prospect of being left with this women but he reluctantly pulled the keys out his pocket, handed them to her before taking of his coat, he was wearing a more casual look of a suit with jeans and his curls where flying all over the place. Ruby was now letting out the odd whimper and Sherlock could that she was now uncomfortable and egger to get away from the person containing her. Petunia turned ruby round to rest on her other arm before returning to the conversation.  
"Is that your land rover?"  
"Yes, well I suppose it's both of ours, it's so much easier than the tube, especially with the baby and I'm not a fan of infants in cabs since...well that's not relevant" the conversation had reached an unwelcome halt. Ruby started to cry and began to squirm in her arms. Petunia stood and so did Sherlock, "come on let's find mummy" said petunia to the baby.  
"No let me" said Sherlock politely yet firmly. Petunia seemed quite taken back by this and clearly still held to opinion that childcare belonged with the mother. In her opinion Sherlock was a reckless character that was socially awkward and the theory to why her daughter decided to have a child by him was unfathomable. However she handed him the baby and Sherlock propped ruby up against his chest with her head resting against his shoulder. The baby began to quieten once she was in Sherlock's arms and he began to gently sway while patting her back.  
"She certainly looks a lot like you" stated Petunia; this statement was said with some resentment and she had clearly hoped that the child would not resemble Sherlock one bit.  
"Um yes" said Sherlock, he was never quite sure what to say to that, he always thought 'of course my child will look like me, what a ridiculous thing to say'  
"Although as she gets older she might look more like Evie, it's very hard to tell with babies of such a young age" added Mia, Sherlock agreed before returning his attention to Ruby. To petunias utter surprise he had stopped her crying and she was now sucking away on her sleeve.  
"Hm...How come you are able to do that?" Asked petunia again, she could not believe what she was witnessing.  
"Well, I've learnt to sooth her, it's very simply when you spend so much time with them" added Sherlock.  
"I thought that the baby develops that type of bond with the mother" said petunia. At this point Mia added, "yes, the first few hours of a baby's life are the most important, that's when they connect to their parent and when the parent connects with their baby, that's why they now encourage fathers to be present" finished Mia. Sherlock now knew the question that was coming.  
"Where you present?" Asked Petunia.  
"Yes, because of the circumstances of the birth, the baby arrived in the flat, she was given to me before the ambulance arrived, both Evie and the baby were then taken for checks at hospital, ruby was then signed over to me once we got the all clear and she stayed with me until Evie was stable" he hadn't thought about it before but ruby's first hours had primarily been with him.  
This seemed to have shut her up and luckily Evie returned.  
"Sorry I got side tracked"  
"I think she's hungry" said Sherlock.  
"How can you tell?" Asked petunia, Sherlock was now getting irritated by all her questions.

"Because of her cry, her last cry was a ''m hungry' cry, babies have different cries for each need, Hunger, parental contact, bowel movement, tiredness, body temperature, illness and then inconsolable crying. Ruby's cry was I'm hungry. It's really not that difficult to tell them apart." Snapped Sherlock, he had said that rather fast, too fast to be polite and petunia looked rather shocked.  
"Okay... well there's a bottle in the bag so it just needs heating" said Evie retrieving the bottle from the bag. Sherlock had a face of 'if I am left alone with you're mother for another moment I will commit a murder' and thankfully Mia came to the rescue.  
"Evie, if you and Sherlock don't mind, could I feed Ruby? It's just it would look great in my essay if I could add primary data from a feeding baby" Evie looked at Sherlock, he nodded and Evie said, "of course Mia that would be great" Sherlock gave the baby to Mia, she scooped up the bottle and headed back into the house. Evie sat down next to Sherlock and her mother said, "That's perfect actually as this gives me the perfect opportunity to discuss something with you" Evie was confused, what more could her mother possibly need to know? Both Sherlock and Evie began to drink their second cup of tea which had been forced upon them by Petunia.

"I know it's rather early to be considering this, but considering that you are now…irreversibly tied together by a child-" Petunia had paused to find the right word and on its discovery, laced it will dread which was clearly heard when spoken out loud. "I will assume that the baby was not planned, and Evie I must say, as much as I have loved becoming a grandmother, I am very disappointed in the way that it has come about" She shot a foul look in Sherlock's direction, luckily it did not catch his eye as at the moment he was reaching for his cup from the table. "Which leads me to ask, for financial and emotional sake, are you planning to have another baby in the future?"

This question took Evie by surprise but not as much as Sherlock who was, when the question was asked, swallowing a mouthful of tea which was now decorating his trousers and most of the table as well. Sherlock spluttered and gasped for air, quickly placing the cup down somewhere on the table before trying to fight of the reflex gagging and tears which always accompanied choking.

"Ruby's not even 2 months yet! Why on earth would you think we were thinking of that?" asked Evie, Sherlock spluttered again and Evie thumped him on the back but Petunia carried on regardless.

"Well, I was going to open a savings bond for Ruby and then thought that it would be difficult to open another of the same interest and such in a few years if another baby comes along" said Petunia.

"So you wanted to know, on the grounds of savings bonds?" asked Evie unbelievingly. "Mum, you expect me to suddenly open up my personal life to you like that after years and years of arguments and disagreements?" Evie was astonished that her mother had the nerve to ask something like that so openly. Sherlock had finally regained speech but his voice was still crackly and husky, "Um…we haven't even considered it, we're… just trying to get used to raise one baby for now"

"Yes exactly, we haven't even planned the next month, let alone the next year" said Evie, "look, I know you're trying to do the best for Ruby despite our…differences, but Sherlock and I aren't going to do anything stupid"

"You accidently got pregnant" stated Petunia, that was true and in all honestly Evie thought that wasn't a bad point.

"Yes and believe me, we won't be making to same mistake twice" finished Evie.

"Definitely not" agreed Sherlock. He began to put his coat on and scarf and this signalled to Evie that it was time to leave, Dan would meet Ruby another time and the conversation with her mother was taking an ugly turn. Once they had said their quick goodbye, Evie and Sherlock began to walk towards the house in search of Mia and the baby but Petunia finished by saying, "you still haven't answered my question, yes or no?" just as they reached the house Sherlock twisted and said, "Maybe!" before popping through the door and joining Evie in the hallway.

They drove back to Baker Street in silence, Ruby was sleeping in the carrier strapped into the back seat, Sherlock was driving and Evie was deeply analysing Sherlock's reply whilst presenting to be asleep. She just needed to think. _Did Sherlock seriously want another baby sometime in the future? Or was he just saying that to mess with her mother? What was their future together now? _Evie hadn't considered the future or how their relationship would pan out and she certainly didn't think that another baby would ever be an option, but just from one simple word, life had suddenly got complicated.

**Thanks for Reading!** **please leave a review, its always great to have feedback and here what people think :)**


	19. Chapter 19- 8 Words

**Sorry It took me such a long time to update! It took a while for me to decide how I wanted these last few chapters to go. Please review and let me know what you think, It's lovely to here and what keeps me writing :)**

"Hey, I'm back…"called Evie from the stairs, she had been shopping for her trip to Dublin that evening, her train left at 6:15pm from London Waterloo and she had less than 2 hours to get everything ready. She and Sherlock hadn't talked about the meeting at her parents since the event, their relationship was on unstable ground already and a conversation on that would surely spark another agreement. As she walked up the stairs she could smell smoke. She opened the door to find Sherlock smoking. "Sherlock! What the fuck are you doing?!" screeched Evie, "Ruby's in the room?!"

"what?" answered Sherlock, he looked weary, tired and pasty, the lack of sleep was really having an effect on his body.

"You're smoking with Ruby here?! Secondary smoke Sherlock?! Babies under 6 months are twice as likely to die of SIDS if exploded to cigarette smoke! You're such an idiot! How the hell could you do that?!" Evie stormed over to Ruby's rocking seat and bent down to check her. Sherlock stood and through the cigarette out the window.

"Oh come on, one won't do any harm! Evie, I'm exhausted!" protested Sherlock, running his hands through his hair in exasperation. "her crying is driving me insane!"

"Sherlock! You of all people must know how secondary smoke affects others lungs, not to mentioned new-borns!" Evie picked Ruby up before turning round to face him.

"Evie, It was one fucking cigarette!" shouted Sherlock.

"yeah okay so It's one today, and what about tomorrow? Or the next? How long before she joins you? And you know what? That's not even the point! We agreed you could still smoke, but away from her! and you can't even be bothered to get off your ass and-" Evie shouted back but Sherlock cut her off.

"hey that's not fair! I-" shouted Sherlock pointing at her.

Evie cut him off back, "No Sherlock! It's not bloody fair! _I've_ had to give everything up! I can't even have a decent drink! And you can't even get yourself down stairs for a fag! God!"

"Evie! It was just one! My mind is racing out of control! I can't take it!"

"God Sherlock-"

"I can make my own decisions! I don't need _you _dictating my life to me or making _my _decisions!" shouted Sherlock, his tone was bitter and set out to hurt. Evie stood completely motionless, she was holding Ruby in one arm and her other was being used to express her anger.

"I know, I've always understood it's just, I hoped that _your own_ child's health might be more important than a petty habit!" screamed Evie.

"A petty habit!? Don't you think I'd quit if I could?!" Sherlock shouted.

"I had too! I had to do it because you got me pregnant so don't for a second lecture me on how difficult it is!"

"My mind is different! My body responds differently to addictive substances! I can't control it!" shouted Sherlock shaking his hands at her but Evie cut him off again.

"don't you _dare_ try and justify it! God! I just can't…" Evie paused, gathering her thoughts, picking up Ruby's bag, she headed out the flat door but momentarily stopped and said "I just can't look at you at the moment" And with that she headed out.

"Evie! Wait!" yelled Sherlock chasing her down the stairs and onto the street. She hailed a taxi but he grabbed her arm.

"No Sherlock!" said Evie spinning round, tears were building up in her eyes and she was desperately trying to fight them back. "I just can't _stand _to look at you…" whispered Evie, with those words Sherlock's grip loosened and Evie broke free, she got into the cab, still holding Ruby and was gone, leaving Sherlock, with 8 words.


	20. Chapter 20- Final Chapter

**I'm so sorry that I've taken so long to update but this is my 6th version of the last chapter and It's been very tricky to decide how to take this but I hope you enjoy my last Chapter and please review, It's always wonderful to hear what people think :)**

Sherlock was left standing motionless and abandoned on Baker Street. Stumbling back towards the door, Sherlock fumbled for his mobile and dialled John, holding the phone to his ear he listened to those dooming rings. When John picked up Sherlock was already in the hallway.

"Hey Sherlock, why are you ringing? I thought we were meeting at-" John started to talk but Sherlock cut in, his voice was shaky and confused.

"Shee's gone."

"Gone? Who's gone? Gone where?"

"Evie. She's gone. I don't know where she's gone but she's taken Ruby" Sherlock's voice was getting deeper and huskier, he was getting emotional and John new this had gotten serious.

"Sherlock? What the hell happened?"

"I don't know. We had a fight. Evie stormed out."

"Okay, I'll be over in 5" finished John before Sherlock put the phone down. He climbed back up to the flat, it seemed bleak and draining, he sat waiting for John but his mind was racing out of control. He knew he had blown it; Evie was gone and taken their baby with her. A small, droplet of water fell from the corner of his eye and splattered on his jeans, Sherlock Holmes was crying. Minutes later he heard footsteps coming up the stairs. Sherlock jumped up, whipping his eyes and quickly walked into the kitchen.

Sherlock explained what had happened to John and after giving a lecture on infant lung capacity, John gave his verdict.

"Jesus..."

"She's gone-" muttered Sherlock.

"No hold on Sherlock, you might be over reacting, she might just-" John tried.

"No. No. John, you didn't _see_ her face when she left, or how she said those things, she meant it" muttered Sherlock, he was getting into a bit of a state. They sat in silence listening to the buzz of London outside, the continuous drown of life, inspiring yet worthless.

They sat silent and mournful in the flat, listening to every creak of the building. Sherlock was still wearing his coat and scarf and seemed in no state to remove them. After several minutes the hall door clicked. Someone was unlocking the door. Someone with a key. Sherlock darted across the room, through the door and down the stairs. Standing in the hallway was Evie, with the carrier in tow.

"Evie…" whispered Sherlock.

"I didn't think you would be here, I was dropping Ruby off with Mrs Hudson" said Evie, her voice was harsh and cold, emotionless and without warmth. She had witnessed Sherlock's reserved attitude to unwanted guests before and had now mastered it.

"Dropping her off, why?" Sherlock's voice responded to her tone, becoming deep, coarse and unforgiving.

"Because I've got to go and its better she's with you-" said Evie sourly. Evie tried to carry on towards Mrs Hudson's flat but Sherlock stopped her.

"With me? Seriously?" Said Sherlock in a sarcastic yet cold manner.

"Well when you have a baby, it sort of becomes your responsibility" Said Evie starring back with icy eyes.

"I'm not the type to be a parent" hissed Sherlock, there was deep anger in both of them and it was boiling to a head.

"Neither am I" Evie hissed back, "Do you think I'm really the type? My day to day job involves chasing someone half way across London on foot and in the process, jumping over buildings and dodging bullets to then somehow corner them into a position so I can shot them! Oh yes and picking up a toddler on the way!" Shouted Evie.

"Well my job's not exactly child friendly!" replied Sherlock.

"Look I _need _to go! Take her" Said Evie trying to hand Sherlock the carrier. Sherlock refused before saying,

"Where. Are. You. Going."

"John!" Shouted Evie, John appeared at the top of the stairs and quickly walked down. "Please can you take Ruby up stairs and put her down for a nap? I think she's tired. Sherlock and I are just…talking" John took Ruby from Evie and headed upstairs, when the flat door shut Evie continued. "Away"

"Why?" Asked Sherlock, they were closer now but the atmosphere was unstable and slightly dangerous.

"You know why. You've always known why. You knew the first moment we met. Having a baby was never going to work, we knew that as soon as we found out"

"Things can change-"

"Not those things."

"What's changed? Something must have happened? Something caused you to bring her back here, what happened?" Said Sherlock, he was starting to deduce again and this brought the inevitable…he was starting to 'delete' his feelings for her.

"I knew being photographed would bring hell, people know. Important people, people who would willingly shot me and that's my own risk but not Ruby's. I was getting out a cab and I heard a gunshot. The second shot hit the street and the third just missed the carrier. They were shooting at the baby."

"And I assume that the gunman was working from someone or some organisation linked to your work and as 'revenge' for a previous shooting of yours?"

"Yes..."

"And your enemies have finally caught up with you" added Sherlock.

"Someone like me, being pictured with someone like you, and then our baby. We're not exactly harmless and they assume the baby would be the exact opposite of harmless." Said Evie.

"And the papers confirmed everything. The baby, the location, our every movements" said Sherlock.

"Exactly, we aren't the type of people who live 'happily ever after' Sherlock. They want something back for what I've done and as long as Ruby's with me, she's the target."

"You don't need to leave! That's not the answer!" said Sherlock, he was getting frustrated and his anger seemed to be rising off him like steam.

"But I do" whispered Evie. "There's no future is there, really? Today was the tipping point, I'd been kidding myself that we could do this, everything about us is the opposite of how parents should be. And then the shooting confirmed it, she's not safe with me."

"And you think she's safe with me?" asked Sherlock, "the flat is broken into, guns are at an immediate reach-" Evie cut him off.

"Safe, No. But Safer? Yes. There's no future-"

"Why do you say that?!" said Sherlock in a raised voice. Then had been inches away from each other but Evie backed away.

"Because it's true. Come one Sherlock! What do you expect? We dodge bullets through her younger years until she can shot herself?! And what if I get pregnant again? I would be an easy target, a sitting duck!"

"You can't just walk out now! Without any warning!" started Sherlock again, he was trying to find something to change her mind.

"No warning?! These last month's I've been severing any links or ties I have to her. What about the surname? Just Holmes so she can't be connected to me? The hospital forms? The scans? I even got my own medical details to delete anything connected to the birth so it couldn't be linked! I even got you to register her so that couldn't be traced, I knew this was coming so I've done as much as I can to distance her from me" Sherlock was pacing the hall and throwing his arms around in exasperation, he was angry, hurting and tormented by her, and she was breaking him.

"You can't just walk out! What do you expect me to do!? Suddenly become the perfect father?! Do the school run?! Go on play dates?! You can't just leave because you can't handle it!" A sharp cracking sound echoed through the hall. Sherlock's right cheek was red raw and his expression was one of complete shock.

"Your such a dick, you know that?!" shouted Evie, "you think I'm leaving because I can't handle it?!" Eve's voice cracked but she regained her control and said, "I can't explain what leaving is doing to me, it's burning me, burning into my soul and scaring me. But if I stay I can guarantee she'd be dead in a month, and that would be constant, unexplainable…agony" by the end Evie's voice was a mere whisper. She walked over and sat down on the steps, placing her head in her hands but Sherlock was still pacing frantically. After several minutes of silence Sherlock sat down on the steps next to her. The atmosphere had cooled off, it was friendlier but definitely unsafe.

"I'm sorry, about…"said Evie gesturing to his cheek.

"oh no I um…I deserved that one" said Sherlock, making Evie chuckle.

"You can't leave" whispered Sherlock, his voice was different to before, it was calmer, more human. He leant towards her and gently kissed her. It only lasted moments, Evie pulled away, she knew if she didn't he would persuade her to stay and the results would be unforgivable.

She whispered back, "But I must, you _know I must"_ she shifted around to get up but before doing so, gave him kiss, the final and deciding kiss. The confirmation of her departure.

Evie stood and Sherlock followed her. As they faced each other behind the door of 221B, tears were silently streaming down Evie's porcelain cheeks. As she spoke her voice stayed intact, "Just promise me, 3 things Sherlock…" Sherlock's facial muscles weakened and his emotions leaked onto his face, he nodded and she began "One, Don't ever let her think that I regret having her, it happened and I would never take it back or have it any other way. Two, that she drove us apart or caused us to split, It's our jobs which will always effect our lives, they change everything" Tears were still building up and then streaming down her face and Sherlock seemed distressed by this.

She took a pause and a deep breath before saying, "And three, please, never let her think, _for even a second, _that I left because I didn't love her. I will _always_ love her…" Evie's voice broke to a whisper. "I cannot even begin to describe… the excruciating agony… that leaving my baby is causing me…and it will. Never. go. away."

"Of course" answered Sherlock, glints of tears were building up in his eye, he was fiercely fighting them back but it was only a matter of time.

Evie folded her coat tightly around her neck, it was cold outside and as the tears hit the night air they would sting, imprinting onto her cheeks. Sherlock unwrapped his scarf from his neck and carefully placed it over Evie's shoulders. He didn't let go, ghostly tears began to fall onto the collar of his coat and he half laughed in surprise.

"Haah, I'm crying…I can't remember the last time I cried" he turned his head so he wasn't facing her "…such an odd human response to emotion…inevitable" he turned back to her and she said,

"And the last thing…I did not leave because of you. You're my own drug, my addiction and a part of me will always love you"

"I don't know…how will I…" Sherlock began to talk but he was battling to keep his voice steady. "I…I" Sherlock couldn't find the words; she knew the idea of a romantic attachment to someone had always perplexed him. "I _love you_" Were the three words that quietly seeped out the detective's mouth.

They were said with such raw pain and emotion that nothing else needed saying. Evie opened the door and stepped out onto Baker Street, she hailed a cab and Sherlock followed her. As she waited for the taxi to pull over she placed her hand on his slapped cheek, her hand was ice cold and soothed his skin. He closed his eyes and let his head rest slightly in her hand, but the moment was shorter than brief and she opened the door of the cab but before getting in turned and said, "I know, I will always know, I will always love you and I will _always _love her" Tears were streaming down both of their cheeks as she climbed into the back of the car, the door shut, the engine blared and she was gone. Lost into the diverse, confusing and unique streets that make up London.

**I am considering doing a short sequel and/or prequel to this story as I am definitely going to miss writing it and hopefully someone will also miss it and give me the kick I will need to do it! **

**Like I've said, If you could give me some feedback I would be hugely grateful, It's fantastic to hear and keeps my spirits up :) And thank you to everyone who has previously reviewed as I couldn't say whether I would have carried on without you :) **

**Also If you liked this then my other story 'Meet the Millers' is a mini Prequel of 'Sherlock and Evie' It might take your fancy? **

**But overall thank you everyone who's Favorited, followed and reviewed, It's been brilliant.**


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